Post by admin on Mar 3, 2014 1:56:16 GMT 8
Pinoy scientists' discovery challenges what everyone thought they knew about plants
TJ DIMACALI /GMA News
March 2, 2014
A Filipino-led international team of scientists has discovered that a flower endemic to Luzon may be missing genetic material once thought to be essential to all plants. Their work promises to rewrite biology textbooks around the world–and paves the way for new directions in pharmaceutical research.
Long Island Univerity’s Dr. Jeanmaire Molina and New York University’s Dr. Michael Purugganan led a group of scientists from the Philippines, the US, New Zealand, and the United Arab Emirates in discovering that Rafflesia lagascae does not seem to have an intact chloroplast genome.
The chloroplast is the part of the plant cell that carries out photosynthesis, converting sunlight into food. It has long been thought to be fundamental to plants, even those that don’t rely on photosynthesis.
Surviving without genetic material
However, in-depth studies of R. lagascae have found it to contain no more than non-functioning fragments of chloroplast genetic material, showing that the plant has somehow found a way to survive without it.
“This is the first time that it has been shown that a plant can exist without a chloroplast genome, with its encoded genetic instructions that allows most plant cells to function properly,” noted a press release sent to GMA News Online by Dr. Purugganan.
“The study raises questions on how important plant compounds are chemically synthesized in plants. Many of the chemicals that are made by this plant could have potential applications, particularly in pharmaceuticals,” the release added.
Culmination of Filipino research
The surprise finding is the culmination of research spurred by Dr. Molina when she visited Mt. Banahaw in Luzon last year in search of samples, for which she was interviewed on GMA News To Go.
The Rafflesia is one of the world’s strangest plants: capable of reaching up to three feet in diameter, it is a giant among flowers and can only be found in Southeast Asia.
It has traditional medicinal uses in some places, although these practices have been discouraged because of the flower’s endangered status.
Of the 28 known species in the world, ten can be found only in the Philippines. Its distinctive foul smell has led its being nicknamed the “corpse flower”
Source: ph.news.yahoo.com/pinoy-scientists-discovery-challenges-everyone-thought-knew-plants-200727434.html
TJ DIMACALI /GMA News
March 2, 2014
A Filipino-led international team of scientists has discovered that a flower endemic to Luzon may be missing genetic material once thought to be essential to all plants. Their work promises to rewrite biology textbooks around the world–and paves the way for new directions in pharmaceutical research.
Long Island Univerity’s Dr. Jeanmaire Molina and New York University’s Dr. Michael Purugganan led a group of scientists from the Philippines, the US, New Zealand, and the United Arab Emirates in discovering that Rafflesia lagascae does not seem to have an intact chloroplast genome.
The chloroplast is the part of the plant cell that carries out photosynthesis, converting sunlight into food. It has long been thought to be fundamental to plants, even those that don’t rely on photosynthesis.
Surviving without genetic material
However, in-depth studies of R. lagascae have found it to contain no more than non-functioning fragments of chloroplast genetic material, showing that the plant has somehow found a way to survive without it.
“This is the first time that it has been shown that a plant can exist without a chloroplast genome, with its encoded genetic instructions that allows most plant cells to function properly,” noted a press release sent to GMA News Online by Dr. Purugganan.
“The study raises questions on how important plant compounds are chemically synthesized in plants. Many of the chemicals that are made by this plant could have potential applications, particularly in pharmaceuticals,” the release added.
Culmination of Filipino research
The surprise finding is the culmination of research spurred by Dr. Molina when she visited Mt. Banahaw in Luzon last year in search of samples, for which she was interviewed on GMA News To Go.
The Rafflesia is one of the world’s strangest plants: capable of reaching up to three feet in diameter, it is a giant among flowers and can only be found in Southeast Asia.
It has traditional medicinal uses in some places, although these practices have been discouraged because of the flower’s endangered status.
Of the 28 known species in the world, ten can be found only in the Philippines. Its distinctive foul smell has led its being nicknamed the “corpse flower”
Source: ph.news.yahoo.com/pinoy-scientists-discovery-challenges-everyone-thought-knew-plants-200727434.html