VIB is an independent research institute that translates insights in biology into impactful innovations for society. Collaborating with the five Flemish universities, it conducts research in plant biology, cancer, neuroscience, microbiology, inflammatory diseases, artificial intelligence and more. VIB connects science with entrepreneurship and stimulates the growth of the Flemish biotech ecosystem. The institute contributes to solutions for societal challenges such as new methods for diagnostics and treatments, as well as innovations for agriculture. Learn more at www.vib.be.

VIB is an independent research institute that translates insights in biology into impactful innovations for society. Collaborating with the five...

VIB is een onafhankelijk onderzoeksinstituut dat inzichten in de biologie vertaalt naar impactvolle innovaties voor de samenleving. Het werkt samen met de vijf Vlaamse universiteiten en diverse partners in de biotechsector en doet onderzoek in plantenbiologie, kanker, neurowetenschap, microbiologie, ontstekingsziekten, artificiële intelligentie en meer. VIB verbindt wetenschap met ondernemerschap en stimuleert zo de groei van de Vlaamse biotech. Het instituut draagt bij aan oplossingen voor maatschappelijke uitdagingen, zoals nieuwe methoden voor diagnose en behandeling en landbouwinnovaties. Meer info op www.vib.be. 

VIB is een onafhankelijk onderzoeksinstituut dat inzichten in de biologie vertaalt naar impactvolle innovaties voor de samenleving. Het werkt...

Joran Lauwers

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Opening the door for high-efficiency gene-editing research

Improving transformation frequency in maize 

Ghent,Belgium 25/06/2024 – Maize is one of the classical model organisms for genetic research. However, the low transformation frequency remains an important bottleneck for many gene-editing applications. Researchers at the VIB-UGent Center for Plant Systems Biology have made substantial strides in overcoming this bottleneck. By leveraging a combination of ternary vectors and morphogenic regulators, they have significantly boosted transformation efficiency, paving the way for more effective research and innovative applications. Their research is published in The Plant Journal.

Improving CRISPR-induced multiplex mutagenesis

Increasing experimental efficiency in plant genome editing

Ghent 07/05/2024 – CRISPR/Cas9 remains the most powerful tool to generate mutations in plant genomes. Studying the various combinations of mutations has significantly increased the scale of experimental setups, necessitating more space to grow numerous plants. Researchers from VIB-UGent Center for Plant Systems Biology have improved multiplex mutagenesis, which reduces the complexity and cost of large-scale genome editing projects. Their results have been published in The Plant Journal.

CPL3 protein regulates DELLA

New insights into the GA pathway

Ghent 13/05/2024 - Gibberellic acid (GA) plays a central role in many plant developmental processes and is crucial for crop improvement. DELLA proteins function as essential core suppressors in the GA pathway. However, little is known about the regulation of these DELLA proteins. A team of researchers from the VIB-UGent Center for Plant Systems Biology and the Sichuan Agricultural University (China) has now identified CPL3 as a vital regulator of DELLA. Their findings were published in New Phytologist.

Ghent, Belgium 25/03/2024 – Brassinosteroids are steroidal phytohormones required for the growth and development of plants, and are widely used in agriculture to improve crop yields. They are synthesized in the cell interior but binding their receptors at the cell surface. While brassinosteroids were discovered over 50 years ago, research on the mechanisms exporting them out of the cell lagged for decades. Researchers have now uncovered a role for the Arabidopsis ABC transporter ABCB19, formerly known as an auxin transporter, in brassinosteroid export. Their findings have been published in Science this week.

New study elucidates the role of Arabidopsis ABCB19 as brassinosteroid exporter 

Ghent, Belgium 25/03/2024 – Brassinosteroids are steroidal phytohormones required for the growth and development of plants, and are widely used in...

Leuven/Ghent, 08 Febuary 2024 – Belgian researchers from VIB-KU Leuven Center for Microbiology and VIB-UGent Center for Plant Systems Biology have developed a new toolbox of 16 different short DNA sequences that allow triggering controlled and specific recombination events in any genome. This new patented toolbox, complementing – and for certain applications surpassing – CRISPR, is now available for researchers and industry in the field of genome engineering. The results are reported today in two concurrent papers in the prestigious journal Nature Communications.

A new toolbox allows engineering genomes without CRISPR

Leuven/Ghent, 08 Febuary 2024 – Belgian researchers from VIB-KU Leuven Center for Microbiology and VIB-UGent Center for Plant Systems Biology...

Ghent, 01/02/2024 – Much has been written about the European Climate law and the European Nitrate Directive. Besides social concerns, drastically reducing greenhouse gasses by 2030 and structurally lowering the use of nitrogen in agriculture poses significant challenges. Researchers from the VIB-UGent Center for Plant Systems Biology now present concrete research results to lower nitrogen usage by targeting microorganisms in the soil. Their findings have been published in various scientific journals.

Belgian researchers provide a strong boost to sustainable agriculture 

Ghent, 01/02/2024 – Much has been written about the European Climate law and the European Nitrate Directive. Besides social concerns, drastically...

Gene analyses revealing the capacity of marine flowering plants to exist under changing environmental conditions provide clues for the conservation and sustainable use of important ecosystems

Use it or lose it: How seagrasses conquered the sea

26.01.2024 - Ghent/Groningen/Kiel/Naples. Seagrasses provide the foundation of one of the most highly biodiverse, yet vulnerable, coastal marine ecosystems globally. They arose in three independent lineages from their freshwater ancestors some 100 million years ago and are the only fully submerged, marine flowering plants. Moving to such a radically different environment is a rare evolutionary event and definitely not easy. How did they do it? New reference quality genomes provide important clues with relevance to their conservation and biotechnological application.

New tools, including a deep learning model, predict the functionality of proteins, even in non-model organisms

Deep learning helps to find new targets in soy for crop improvement

Ghent, 3 August 2023 – Crop genetic diversity is a powerful tool to adapt crops to a changing climate. However, to select the best candidates in the plant breeding process, we must know and understand the complex biochemical networks underlying plant growth and development. To achieve this, researchers from the North Carolina State University (USA), the VIB-UGent Center for Plant Systems Biology and ILVO (Belgium) have developed tools, including a deep learning model, that predict the functionality of proteins, even in non-model organisms. This represents a significant advance in systems biology and provides more reliable predictions on which locations to target in the genome. The work appears in Nature Communications.

The cell cycle inhibitor SIAMESE-RELATED1 (SMR1) plays a crucial role in how leaves adapt to the environment

VIB researchers uncover key genetic pathway in leaf development 

The surface of a leaf is composed of diverse cell types that are remarkably well-balanced and organized. The team of Prof. Lieven De Veylder (VIB-UGent Center for Plant Systems Biology) and colleagues from the University of Sheffield have made a significant breakthrough in understanding the development of leaf epidermis. The study, published in Nature Plants, could pave the way to more climate-resilient plants.

New research discovers how plant hormones called brassinosteroids affect gene expression and plant growth

Hormones and plant growth

Hormones play an important role in the development of plants. Scientists have long known that networks of genes control cell development, but it has been difficult to untangle the complex relationships between hormones, cell identity, and developmental stage. Now, the team of Eugenia Russinova (VIB-UGent Center for Plant Systems Biology), together with international colleagues from Philip Benfey’s lab at Duke University (US), Iowa State University (US), University of British Columbia (Canada), and Humboldt Universitat zu Berlin (Germany), made great strides in understanding the relationship between plant hormones and gene regulatory networks. Their work appears in Science.

VIB scientists develop ITER, a sensitive, versatile, and high-throughput method to test and quantify gene editing in plant cells

Building better base editors

CRISPR gene editing is a powerful biotechnology tool that allows scientists to alter specific DNA sequences. New research is constantly refining and improving CRISPR technology. Researchers from the team of Prof. Thomas Jacobs (VIB-UGent Center for Plant Systems Biology), together with BASF Innovation Center Gent and colleagues from the VIB screening Core and VIB Flow Core, now report an important advance in CRISPR base editing technology. Their work was funded by VLAIO and appears in Genome Biology.

Researchers at the VIB-UGent Center for Plant Systems Biology developed a pipeline based on genome editing to accelerate gene discovery for breeding programs to improve agronomic traits in crops.

Just BREEDIT – bridging the gap between conventional breeding and molecular biology

Agriculture faces major challenges – reducing yield losses during extended periods of heat and drought, to name one. To sustain food production, we must adapt our crops to rapidly changing climate conditions. But conventional breeding programs are labor-intensive and time-consuming. Scientists at the VIB-UGent Center for Plant Systems Biology and ILVO developed a fast gene discovery pipeline in maize to advance breeding programs for the benefit of humanity and the environment.

Plant Biology