
February 2018
Plant Science to the Rescue
Research on plant microbiomes and viruses could save our food supply
Features
Contributors

Contributors
Meet some of the people featured in the February 2018 issue of The Scientist.
Editorial

An Enduring Partnership
Humanity would be nothing without plants. It’s high time we recognize their crucial role in sustaining life on Earth.
Speaking of Science

Ten-Minute Sabbatical
Take a break from the bench to puzzle and peruse.
Freeze Frame

Caught on Camera
Selected images of the Day from the-scientist.com
Notebook

Researchers Cryopreserve Coral Sperm
A project aims to preserve samples of the climate change–vulnerable animals for future restoration.

Researchers Catalog Earth’s Microbiome
The new database includes data from 27,000 samples collected at sites ranging from Alaskan permafrost to the ocean floor.

Scientists Unite to Save “Monkey Island” After Hurricane Maria
Puerto Rico’s Cayo Santiago has hosted decades of research in cognition, primatology, immunization, and other areas.

Graduate Student Identifies Dozens of New Fly Species
Over the past seven years, Xiao-Long Lin has characterized nearly 70 new species of nonbiting midges and developed DNA barcodes to aid in future ecological surveys.
Modus Operandi

Detecting Protein Clumps
A synthetic genetic tool called yTRAP allows high-throughput detection of protein aggregates in cells.
The Literature

Plant Cell Walls Can Control Growth in the Dark
To maintain an energy-saving growth strategy in the absence of light, seedlings need signals generated by pectin in their cell walls.

War Dance of the Honeybee
One species has developed a novel waggle to warn about invading wasps.

A Newly Identified Photoenzyme Helps Algae Pump Out Fuel
The finding could lead to a new way of producing “green” alternatives to fossil fuels.
Profiles

Planting Independence: A Profile of Katayoon Dehesh
After a harrowing escape from Iran, Dehesh never shied away from difficult choices to pursue a career in plant biology.
Scientist to Watch

Anjali Iyer-Pascuzzi Investigates How Pathogens Invade Plant Roots
The Purdue University researcher is one of the first to examine the molecular processes that underlie infection by soil microbes.
Lab Tools

Virtual Reality May Revolutionize Brain Science
New technology could open doors for researchers studying animals’ most complex organ.

Mapping Brain Proteins
Researchers are using souped-up mass spectrometry to localize proteins within brain cells.
Careers

How to Make Scientists into Better Peer Reviewers
From efforts to increase the transparency of the review process to initiatives offering training, there are many attempts underway to make better reviewers out of researchers.
Reading Frames

Agricultural Technology Can Save Humanity from Starvation (Again)
We are on the cusp of yet another revolution in how we feed the populace.
Foundations

A Brush with Inheritance, 1878
Lampbrush chromosomes, first observed in the 19th century, still offer an unparalleled glimpse into how genetic information is organized in the cell.