The John Innes Centre receives strategic funding from BBSRC
The John Innes Centre receives strategic funding from BBSRC
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Snapdragon flower
Snapdragon flowers at various key stages of development LinksRoyal Society Summer Science Exhibition 2009June 2009 A common garden flower can reveal how shapes are formed by genes. The snapdragon helps scientists understand how patterns form during growth and how characteristics are inherited. John Innes Centre scientists and the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) will present their research on snapdragons at the Royal Society’s annual Summer Science Exhibition in London from Tuesday 30th June to Saturday 4th July. The commonplace snapdragon flower helps scientists understand how complex biological shapes like hearts or flowers emerge; for example, how an acorn can turn itself into an oak tree or an egg into an adult human being. “The snapdragon provides vital clues to understanding how genes work," says Professor Enrico Coen. These are clues that Darwin missed during his own snapdragon experiments, before genes were discovered. He observed that if he crossed two types of snapdragon, he always got just one type. But if he then pollinated that offspring, a quarter of the progeny reverted to the other type. Darwin did not realise the significance of his findings. Gregor Mendel realised through similar experiments with peas that they revealed a statistical rule. He was the first to describe the laws of heredity. The first director of the John Innes Centre, William Bateson, rediscovered Mendel’s experiments in the early 20th century and was the first to describe the hereditary units as genes. “Genes guide the formation of shapes and give the snapdragon flower its fascinating symmetry,” says Prof Coen. The scientists, with colleagues from the University Of East Anglia (UEA), will be on hand at the exhibition to talk visitors through their research. Visitors will be able to simulate the crossing experiments carried out by Darwin and Mendel using a special ‘genetic lottery’ machine, and see how their results compare. Using giant snapdragon flower shapes, they will be able to investigate the role of symmetry in the adaptation of flowers to interact with their bee pollinators. The shape and development of snapdragon flowers will be shown using real plants and high-resolution microscope images. A new approach developed by JIC and UEA scientists to find rules underlying growth and development will be demonstrated using 3D computer simulations which visitors can modify, and 3D printouts of the simulated flower shapes. “This commonplace flower will be the centrepiece of a story encompassing many centuries, countries and disciplines,” says Professor Coen. “By following the snapdragon’s tale, the audience can explore basic principles of evolution, variation, genetics and development; subjects that are central to modern biology.” -ENDS- Notes for editors: General info: The Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition showcases cutting edge research in science and engineering from across the UK. It is held annually at the Royal Society, the UK’s national academy of science. The Exhibition runs from Tuesday 30 June to Saturday 4 July 2008. The event is FREE and open to the public. This year, 23 interactive exhibits will be on show presenting the best of UK science, engineering and technology. During the four days of the event, more than 4,000 people are expected to take up the opportunity to explore the exhibition. The Royal Society can be found at 6-9 Carlton House Terrace, London, SW1Y 5AG. Nearest tube stations are Piccadilly Circus or Charing Cross. Tuesday 30 June 2009: 10am - 9pm Further information can be found at http://www.summerscience.org.uk/09/ The Royal Society is an independent academy promoting the natural and applied sciences. Founded in 1660, the Society has three roles, as the UK academy of science, as a learned Society, and as a funding agency. As we prepare for our 350th anniversary in 2010, we are working to achieve five strategic priorities, to:
Between November 2009 and November 2010, the Royal Society will be celebrating its 350th anniversary, promoting a spirit of enquiry, excitement and engagement with science. The Society will be working with organisations, across the country to raise the profile of science and bring scientific activities to a new audience. This will include:
More information about the anniversary year can be found at www.seefurther.org. For further information contact: The John Innes Centre, www.jic.ac.uk, is an independent, world-leading research centre in plant and microbial sciences with over 800 staff. JIC is based on Norwich Research Park and carries out high quality fundamental, strategic and applied research to understand how plants and microbes work at the molecular, cellular and genetic levels. The JIC also trains scientists and students, collaborates with many other research laboratories and communicates its science to end-users and the general public. The JIC is an Institute of the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council.
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