It is argued that the major challenge is shifting from obtaining structures to understanding their mechanisms, dynamics, and integration within native cellular and physiological contexts, and AI-based modelling offers substantial opportunities, but experimental validation remains essential.
Abstract
Plant proteins remain underrepresented in structural databases, reflecting historical research priorities and technical limitations rather than lower biological complexity. Recent advances in cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM), cryo-electron tomography (cryo-ET), in-cell solid-state NMR, and artificial intelligence (AI)-based modelling are narrowing this gap and enabling structural analysis of previously inaccessible plant molecular assemblies. In this note, we highlight advances in five systems: photoreceptors, photosystem II, the TOC–TIC chloroplast protein-import complex, the plant 80S ribosome, and plastid ESCRT-III-type machinery. Together, these examples illustrate a methodological transition in plant structural biology. We argue that the major challenge is shifting from obtaining structures to understanding their mechanisms, dynamics, and integration within native cellular and physiological contexts. AI-based modelling offers substantial opportunities, but experimental validation remains essential.
This review aims to establish a foundation for rigorous, reproducible, and conceptually coherent research in condensate biology of plants and beyond, with emerging implications for crop genetic improvement and synthetic biology applications.
Jiaxuan Peng, J. Agudo-Canalejo, Monika Chodasiewicz et al.· Science China Life Sciences· 0 citations
Plant mitochondrial biology is undergoing a rapid transformation driven by advances in genomics, structural biology, quantitative imaging, and genome engineering. Once focused primarily on respiration and bioenergetics, the field now encompasses diverse areas including genome evolution, gene expression, organelle dynam...
Jing-Xiu Ji, Rika Nakajima, Nanami Kosaka et al.· Plant and Cell Physiology· 0 citations
Capturing molecular machines in action is essential for understanding protein complex architecture, cellular regulation, and gene function. Here, we present a large-scale structural proteomics resource for Arabidopsis thaliana generated using an optimized cross-linking mass spectrometry (XL-MS) workflow. Using the trif...
Cao Son Trinh, Ruben Shrestha, Peng-Zhi Mao et al.· bioRxiv· 4 citations· ⚡2
Abstract Membraneless organelles (MLOs) in eukaryotic cells, such as the nuclear Cajal body (CB), have been notoriously difficult to biochemically isolate due to their dynamic and delicate nature. CBs, formed via liquid–liquid phase separation, mediate RNA processing and ribonucleoprotein assembly, essential for nuclea...
Yu Zhou, Huang Tan, Axel J. Giudicatti et al.· Nucleic Acids Research· 0 citations
Models such as arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) have underpinned genomic and physiological research in plant science. Advances in genome sequencing, pangenomics, and genome editing have prompted claims of a 'post-model' era, with model-crops and crops such as rice and bread wheat combining agricultural relevance with...
R. Hasterok, Natalia Borowska-Zuchowska, Bozena Kolano et al.· Trends in Plant Science· 0 citations
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