The carvone content of the oil increased and α-phellandrene decreased as the plant progressed from flowering to fruit ripeness.
Despite the importance of protein palmitoylation for plant growth, progress in understanding plant PAT functions has been slow due to redundancy and overlapping substrate specificity [ 1, 2].
Many countries hope to develop such plants, though progress has been halting; Energy Secretary Chu has promised steps to speed up the technology in the United States.
Applying the basic principles of synthetic biology to plants shows progress.
Although current data are inadequate to provide a clear picture of the functional stress response pathways in higher plants, ongoing progress will continue to expand our understanding of the complex mechanisms that are involved.
Since NA is the key for regulating Fe homeostasis in plants, considerable progress has been achieved in cloning and characterizing the functions of NAS in plants, including barley [ 29, 30], Arabidopsis[ 31], rice [ 32], tomato [ 25] and maize [ 33].
Since ZIP is the key transporter for Zn and Fe uptake and translocation in plants, considerable progress has been achieved in cloning and characterizing its functions in crop plants, including soybean and maize [ 30, 31].
A plant-centred system using sensors would record not just an individual plant's progress but also the condition of the soil it is growing in.
"We are trying to explore what is available to the city to keep the project alive," said Stephen T. Zerio, City Council majority leader and a member of a committee monitoring the plant's progress.
And despite recent pleas directed at Prime Minister Manmohan Singh from British members of Parliament urging him to reconsider the project, news of the plant's progress builds by the day.
