Francesco Licausi
@syno2xis.bsky.social
Our study led by the extraordinary multitasking Daai Zhang shows here (tinyurl.com/3uhbkh54) that an additional O2 sensing mechanism based on histone methylation helps roots to prepare for potentially lethal hypoxic stress (such as in waterlogging)
November 27, 2025 at 10:45 AM
Our study led by the extraordinary multitasking Daai Zhang shows here (tinyurl.com/3uhbkh54) that an additional O2 sensing mechanism based on histone methylation helps roots to prepare for potentially lethal hypoxic stress (such as in waterlogging)
Reposted by Francesco Licausi
🏔️🌧️ 🧬 We wrote this Expert View on oxygen sensing, you can read it here! 👇🏼
Recent advances in the mechanism, transduction and function of oxygen sensing in plants
#nendrule #hypoxia #plantscience
academic.oup.com/jxb/advance-...
#nendrule #hypoxia #plantscience
academic.oup.com/jxb/advance-...
Recent advances in the mechanism, transduction and function of oxygen sensing in plants
Abstract. Response to reduced ambient oxygen is a key component of plant adaptation in natural and farmed environments and is regulated by oxygen dependent
academic.oup.com
November 23, 2025 at 1:21 PM
🏔️🌧️ 🧬 We wrote this Expert View on oxygen sensing, you can read it here! 👇🏼
Reposted by Francesco Licausi
Happy to share the key part of my PhD! In our latest preprint with Salma Akter, @emilyflashman.bsky.social & @beagiuntoli.bsky.social, we show that H₂S is involved in oxygen sensing in plants!
How? Check it out!🌱✨
Many thanks to all the authors involved!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
How? Check it out!🌱✨
Many thanks to all the authors involved!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Hydrogen sulfide modulates plant hypoxic responses through the persulfidation of Plant Cysteine Oxidases
Hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) is a gaseous molecule historically regarded as toxic. Nevertheless, increasing evidence has brought to light important physiological roles in both animals and plants. In plants,...
www.biorxiv.org
November 11, 2025 at 5:23 PM
Happy to share the key part of my PhD! In our latest preprint with Salma Akter, @emilyflashman.bsky.social & @beagiuntoli.bsky.social, we show that H₂S is involved in oxygen sensing in plants!
How? Check it out!🌱✨
Many thanks to all the authors involved!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
How? Check it out!🌱✨
Many thanks to all the authors involved!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Reposted by Francesco Licausi
We are beyond excited to reveal the full line-up for our Environmental Signaling in Plants summer school 2026!
Registration is now open here eps.sites.uu.nl - we look forward to seeing you in Utrecht on 24th-26th August!
Registration is now open here eps.sites.uu.nl - we look forward to seeing you in Utrecht on 24th-26th August!
November 11, 2025 at 3:59 PM
We are beyond excited to reveal the full line-up for our Environmental Signaling in Plants summer school 2026!
Registration is now open here eps.sites.uu.nl - we look forward to seeing you in Utrecht on 24th-26th August!
Registration is now open here eps.sites.uu.nl - we look forward to seeing you in Utrecht on 24th-26th August!
Reposted by Francesco Licausi
Introducing the 1,000 Flower Collection 🧬🌹
I’m creating 1,000 genetically designed flowers each crafted with new colors, patterns, and shapes.
Here’s how I’m making it happen… and how you can join me on this journey 🧵(1/7)
I’m creating 1,000 genetically designed flowers each crafted with new colors, patterns, and shapes.
Here’s how I’m making it happen… and how you can join me on this journey 🧵(1/7)
August 11, 2025 at 6:54 PM
Introducing the 1,000 Flower Collection 🧬🌹
I’m creating 1,000 genetically designed flowers each crafted with new colors, patterns, and shapes.
Here’s how I’m making it happen… and how you can join me on this journey 🧵(1/7)
I’m creating 1,000 genetically designed flowers each crafted with new colors, patterns, and shapes.
Here’s how I’m making it happen… and how you can join me on this journey 🧵(1/7)
Reposted by Francesco Licausi
How exciting! The program for our ISPLORE #plantscience conference is now available and covers a wide range of speakers and topics 🌱🌊 Check it out! sites.google.com/view/isplore...
ISPLORE 2025, Nagoya, JAPAN - PROGRAMME
Confirmed Speakers
sites.google.com
July 31, 2025 at 6:22 AM
How exciting! The program for our ISPLORE #plantscience conference is now available and covers a wide range of speakers and topics 🌱🌊 Check it out! sites.google.com/view/isplore...
Reposted by Francesco Licausi
Engineered mutations in the AtPCO4 active site reduce its activity and improve plant submergence resilience! Our new preprint: tinyurl.com/2ydj7qx5, 1 of 2 preprints out this week from the @emilyflashman.bsky.social and @syno2xis.bsky.social labs to link PCO function in plants with flood tolerance!
Engineering reduced activity in the oxygen-sensing Arabidopsis thaliana plant cysteine oxidase 4 enzyme results in improved flood resilience
Plant cysteine oxidases (PCOs) are oxygen-sensing enzymes that play an important role in plant responses to low oxygen (hypoxia). PCO-catalysed dioxygenation of the N-terminal Cys of substrates, inclu...
www.biorxiv.org
July 28, 2025 at 2:09 PM
Engineered mutations in the AtPCO4 active site reduce its activity and improve plant submergence resilience! Our new preprint: tinyurl.com/2ydj7qx5, 1 of 2 preprints out this week from the @emilyflashman.bsky.social and @syno2xis.bsky.social labs to link PCO function in plants with flood tolerance!
Reposted by Francesco Licausi
Can we modulate plant oxygen sensing to enhance flood resilience?🌿🔧
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
This is one of two preprints out this week from the @syno2xis.bsky.social and @emilyflashman.bsky.social labs, two angles on how PCOs shape plant flood resilience. Don’t miss the full story!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
This is one of two preprints out this week from the @syno2xis.bsky.social and @emilyflashman.bsky.social labs, two angles on how PCOs shape plant flood resilience. Don’t miss the full story!
Manipulating plant oxygen sensing through NCO substitution reveals trade-offs between growth and flooding tolerance
The oxygen-dependent degradation of Ethylene Response Factors VII (ERFVIIs) through the N-degron pathway is central to regulating the transcriptional responses to hypoxia in vascular plants. Plant Cys...
www.biorxiv.org
July 28, 2025 at 2:16 PM
Can we modulate plant oxygen sensing to enhance flood resilience?🌿🔧
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
This is one of two preprints out this week from the @syno2xis.bsky.social and @emilyflashman.bsky.social labs, two angles on how PCOs shape plant flood resilience. Don’t miss the full story!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
This is one of two preprints out this week from the @syno2xis.bsky.social and @emilyflashman.bsky.social labs, two angles on how PCOs shape plant flood resilience. Don’t miss the full story!
Reposted by Francesco Licausi
Got papped yesterday at the @biology.ox.ac.uk research showcase spreading the good word about mitochondrial dynamics! So fun being in the new LaMB building and interacting with psych/bio colleagues 🌱🧠
(You can check out the paper I was soapboxing about here: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...)
(You can check out the paper I was soapboxing about here: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...)
July 24, 2025 at 3:46 PM
Got papped yesterday at the @biology.ox.ac.uk research showcase spreading the good word about mitochondrial dynamics! So fun being in the new LaMB building and interacting with psych/bio colleagues 🌱🧠
(You can check out the paper I was soapboxing about here: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...)
(You can check out the paper I was soapboxing about here: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...)
Reposted by Francesco Licausi
Plz RT. We are looking for a postdoc to join our collborative project on AI-guided bioengineering of plant immune receptors @tolgaboz.bsky.social and @jiorgoskourelis.bsky.social labs: www.jobs.ac.uk/job/DNV032/r...
Research Associate in Programmable Plant Immunity at Imperial College London
Apply for the Research Associate in Programmable Plant Immunity role on jobs.ac.uk, the top job board for academic positions in higher education. View details and apply now.
www.jobs.ac.uk
July 7, 2025 at 3:01 PM
Plz RT. We are looking for a postdoc to join our collborative project on AI-guided bioengineering of plant immune receptors @tolgaboz.bsky.social and @jiorgoskourelis.bsky.social labs: www.jobs.ac.uk/job/DNV032/r...
Reposted by Francesco Licausi
A plant's protective outer barrier is nearly impermeable to gases, making ethylene build up inside while oxygen depletes. But when wounded, the dynamics shift 🌱
New research shows this movement of gases through a wound triggers the plant's healing process 👇
bit.ly/3ZWnZVO
@vinayshukla.bsky.social
New research shows this movement of gases through a wound triggers the plant's healing process 👇
bit.ly/3ZWnZVO
@vinayshukla.bsky.social
Gas leakage triggers wound healing in plants
bit.ly
July 3, 2025 at 10:02 AM
A plant's protective outer barrier is nearly impermeable to gases, making ethylene build up inside while oxygen depletes. But when wounded, the dynamics shift 🌱
New research shows this movement of gases through a wound triggers the plant's healing process 👇
bit.ly/3ZWnZVO
@vinayshukla.bsky.social
New research shows this movement of gases through a wound triggers the plant's healing process 👇
bit.ly/3ZWnZVO
@vinayshukla.bsky.social
Reposted by Francesco Licausi
Plants "bleed" too, but through gases!
When wounded, ethylene leaks out and oxygen seeps in. This gas shift acts as an alarm, triggering self-repair to seal the breach. Excited to share our new collaborative work uncovering this clever plant mechanism! Excellent summary here, indulge!
#plantscience
When wounded, ethylene leaks out and oxygen seeps in. This gas shift acts as an alarm, triggering self-repair to seal the breach. Excited to share our new collaborative work uncovering this clever plant mechanism! Excellent summary here, indulge!
#plantscience
July 2, 2025 at 5:26 PM
Plants "bleed" too, but through gases!
When wounded, ethylene leaks out and oxygen seeps in. This gas shift acts as an alarm, triggering self-repair to seal the breach. Excited to share our new collaborative work uncovering this clever plant mechanism! Excellent summary here, indulge!
#plantscience
When wounded, ethylene leaks out and oxygen seeps in. This gas shift acts as an alarm, triggering self-repair to seal the breach. Excited to share our new collaborative work uncovering this clever plant mechanism! Excellent summary here, indulge!
#plantscience
An exciting collaboration that has reignited @vinayshukla.bsky.social's interest for hypoxia and roots! Really happy that we could contribute! @isplore.bsky.social
How plants sense injury in their barrier tissue, periderm? Painstakingly detailed and amazing work by post doc Hiroyuki Iida shows that wounding is sensed by the diffusion of two gases: ethylene and oxygen. @treebiocoe.bsky.social @erc.europa.eu 1/x 🧵 www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Plants monitor the integrity of their barrier by sensing gas diffusion - Nature
A study using Arabidopsis shows that plants can monitor the integrity of their outer barriers by sensing gas diffusion, enabling them to initiate wound repair to prevent water loss and pathogen entry.
www.nature.com
July 2, 2025 at 4:39 PM
An exciting collaboration that has reignited @vinayshukla.bsky.social's interest for hypoxia and roots! Really happy that we could contribute! @isplore.bsky.social
Reposted by Francesco Licausi
How did oxygen-sensing evolve in plants?
In collaboration with @syno2xis.bsky.social Great work from @lauradc.bsky.social et. al. #plantscience @leverhulme.ac.uk
“ERFVIIs as transducers of oxygen-sensing in the evolution of land plant response to hypoxia”
www.cell.com/molecular-pl...
In collaboration with @syno2xis.bsky.social Great work from @lauradc.bsky.social et. al. #plantscience @leverhulme.ac.uk
“ERFVIIs as transducers of oxygen-sensing in the evolution of land plant response to hypoxia”
www.cell.com/molecular-pl...
ERFVIIs as transducers of oxygen-sensing in the evolution of land plant response to hypoxia
Short summary:This study investigates the evolution of the low-oxygen response in
land plants mediated by group VII Ethylene Response Factors (ERFVIIs). We identified
conserved transcriptional signatu...
www.cell.com
May 28, 2025 at 8:21 AM
How did oxygen-sensing evolve in plants?
In collaboration with @syno2xis.bsky.social Great work from @lauradc.bsky.social et. al. #plantscience @leverhulme.ac.uk
“ERFVIIs as transducers of oxygen-sensing in the evolution of land plant response to hypoxia”
www.cell.com/molecular-pl...
In collaboration with @syno2xis.bsky.social Great work from @lauradc.bsky.social et. al. #plantscience @leverhulme.ac.uk
“ERFVIIs as transducers of oxygen-sensing in the evolution of land plant response to hypoxia”
www.cell.com/molecular-pl...
Reposted by Francesco Licausi
🎉Super excited to share our story on how the substrate receptor FBXO31 functions as a quality control factor by recognizing amides. This has been an amazing collaboration between Bode lab and @jcornlab.bsky.social. Special shutout goes to @matthiasmuhar.bsky.social www.nature.com/articles/s41...
C-terminal amides mark proteins for degradation via SCF–FBXO31 - Nature
SCF–FBXO31 scans proteins for C-terminal amidation and marks them for subsequent proteasomal degradation.
www.nature.com
January 29, 2025 at 4:29 PM
🎉Super excited to share our story on how the substrate receptor FBXO31 functions as a quality control factor by recognizing amides. This has been an amazing collaboration between Bode lab and @jcornlab.bsky.social. Special shutout goes to @matthiasmuhar.bsky.social www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by Francesco Licausi
The January 2025 issue of Plant Physiology is now online! Read this Focus Issue on Hypoxia and Plants here: https://academic.oup.com/plphys/issue @ASPB @OxUniPress #PlantSci
The diverse aspects of hypoxia. The size of the oxygen bubble correlates with concentration. This collection highlights the importance of hypoxia for plant development and environmental adaptation such as during flooding, in compacted or poorly aerated soils, high altitudes, and within meristematic tissues. Image credit: Moe Abbas.
academic.oup.com
January 2, 2025 at 6:16 PM
The January 2025 issue of Plant Physiology is now online! Read this Focus Issue on Hypoxia and Plants here: https://academic.oup.com/plphys/issue @ASPB @OxUniPress #PlantSci
Reposted by Francesco Licausi
Thanks to @fromani.bsky.social for organising #nonseedUK24 in Cambridge. What a fantastic meeting. Thanks for the generous sponsorship @gensocuk.bsky.social and @biologists.bsky.social 😃 🌱 🧬
December 17, 2024 at 10:54 AM
Thanks to @fromani.bsky.social for organising #nonseedUK24 in Cambridge. What a fantastic meeting. Thanks for the generous sponsorship @gensocuk.bsky.social and @biologists.bsky.social 😃 🌱 🧬
Reposted by Francesco Licausi
Preprint alert, please share!!
With our new study, we engineered an orthogonal hypoxia-responsive system in plants inspired by mammalian HIF protein degradation. We demonstrated that this system could control protein stability and activity, enabling modulation of Oxygen sensing outputs. Here's how:
With our new study, we engineered an orthogonal hypoxia-responsive system in plants inspired by mammalian HIF protein degradation. We demonstrated that this system could control protein stability and activity, enabling modulation of Oxygen sensing outputs. Here's how:
December 15, 2024 at 5:46 PM
Preprint alert, please share!!
With our new study, we engineered an orthogonal hypoxia-responsive system in plants inspired by mammalian HIF protein degradation. We demonstrated that this system could control protein stability and activity, enabling modulation of Oxygen sensing outputs. Here's how:
With our new study, we engineered an orthogonal hypoxia-responsive system in plants inspired by mammalian HIF protein degradation. We demonstrated that this system could control protein stability and activity, enabling modulation of Oxygen sensing outputs. Here's how:
Reposted by Francesco Licausi
First Bluesky post to share our review with the world! Is there anything, beyond oxygen biosensors, that SynBio can provide to the world of plant hypoxia? Check it out here! @plantphys.bsky.social academic.oup.com/plphys/advan...
Designed to breathe: synthetic biology applications in plant hypoxia
Novel biosensors and concepts from engineering biology expand the toolbox for plant low oxygen biology research
academic.oup.com
December 5, 2024 at 8:51 PM
First Bluesky post to share our review with the world! Is there anything, beyond oxygen biosensors, that SynBio can provide to the world of plant hypoxia? Check it out here! @plantphys.bsky.social academic.oup.com/plphys/advan...
Reposted by Francesco Licausi
We are very happy to welcome Yasin Dagas soon starting as a Heisenberg professor at COS. Yasin's topic is evolutionary cell biology focusing on autophagy in plants and beyond. www.oeaw.ac.at/gmi/research... @dfgpublic.bsky.social
December 3, 2024 at 8:00 AM
We are very happy to welcome Yasin Dagas soon starting as a Heisenberg professor at COS. Yasin's topic is evolutionary cell biology focusing on autophagy in plants and beyond. www.oeaw.ac.at/gmi/research... @dfgpublic.bsky.social
Reposted by Francesco Licausi
Check out our update on Tools to understand hypoxia responses in plant tissues in @plantphys.bsky.social Really enjoyed putting this together with Ole Pedersen, @schwarzlanderlab.bsky.social We hope you will find it a useful starting point on your low oxygen journey🌱
academic.oup.com/plphys/advan...
academic.oup.com/plphys/advan...
Tools to understand hypoxia responses in plant tissues
Abstract. Our understanding of how low oxygen (O2) conditions arise in plant tissues and how they shape specific responses has seen major advancement in re
academic.oup.com
November 27, 2024 at 9:17 AM
Check out our update on Tools to understand hypoxia responses in plant tissues in @plantphys.bsky.social Really enjoyed putting this together with Ole Pedersen, @schwarzlanderlab.bsky.social We hope you will find it a useful starting point on your low oxygen journey🌱
academic.oup.com/plphys/advan...
academic.oup.com/plphys/advan...
Reposted by Francesco Licausi
Freaky Flowers Volume 3!🌸🧬
Did you know that just a few mutations can transform the Arabidopsis flower into all kinds of forms? 🤯
Here’s a tour of 6 mutants that orchestrate floral development and architecture 🧵
Did you know that just a few mutations can transform the Arabidopsis flower into all kinds of forms? 🤯
Here’s a tour of 6 mutants that orchestrate floral development and architecture 🧵
November 19, 2024 at 1:44 PM
Freaky Flowers Volume 3!🌸🧬
Did you know that just a few mutations can transform the Arabidopsis flower into all kinds of forms? 🤯
Here’s a tour of 6 mutants that orchestrate floral development and architecture 🧵
Did you know that just a few mutations can transform the Arabidopsis flower into all kinds of forms? 🤯
Here’s a tour of 6 mutants that orchestrate floral development and architecture 🧵