The Northeast Section of the American Society of Plant Biologists (NE ASPB) convened its annual meeting on April 25–26, 2026 at The College of New Jersey (TCNJ). The meeting was organized by Leeann Thornton, PhD., former ASPB President and current Professor at TCNJ, alongside the Northeast Section Executive Board and Shoshana Kronfeld.
Sorghum responds to drought through a coordinated, time-dependent shift from early physiological stress and metabolic suppression to later activation of antioxidant defenses, hormone signaling, and carbohydrate remobilization pathways that enhance survival under prolonged water deficit.
The National Association of Plant Breeders (NAPB) will host its 2026 Annual Meeting on June 15–18, 2026, at the Texas A&M Hotel and Conference Center in College Station, Texas. This annual gathering provides a unique forum for public- and private-sector plant breeders working across more than 40 crop species. Attendees will share innovative breeding strategies, explore emerging technologies, and engage in open discussions on plant breeding policy and societal challenges.
SbMT4 functions as a zinc-specific metallothionein whose conserved histidine residues are essential for selective Zn binding, proper protein folding, and limiting cadmium incorporation, although altering these residues does not significantly change whole-plant metal accumulation, when expressed ectopically.
The Tutorials in Genomics & Bioinformatics: RNA-Seq (TGB) course is a two-day, immersive introduction to genomics and bioinformatics, designed to equip researchers with the conceptual foundation and practical skills needed to analyze high-throughput sequencing data. Modeled after Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory’s renowned Genome Access Course, TGB emphasizes active learning, real data analysis, and direct engagement with expert instructors.
Integrated transcriptomic–biochemical network analysis of developing sorghum grain identified interconnected regulatory modules for protein and starch biosynthesis, highlighting SbPBF1a, SbPBF1b, and SbNF-YC13 as candidate central transcriptional regulators and revealing structural genes potentially underlying low protein digestibility.
The Center for Sorghum Improvement (CSI) will host a virtual seminar by Dr. Ethan Triplett, Director of Crop Improvement for the United Sorghum Checkoff Program, National Sorghum Producers, on Tuesday, April 14 at 11:00 AM CT. His talk, titled “Translation,
Field evaluation of a large sorghum diversity panel revealed heritable, environmentally responsive variation in NPQ capacity and kinetics, and integrative genomic analyses identified polygenic candidate loci—many linked to redox regulation, stress signaling, and photosynthetic control—that provide targets for improving photoprotection and photosynthetic efficiency in C4 crops.
