Ancestral sequence reconstruction of the CYP711 family reveals functional divergence in strigolactone biosynthetic enzymes associated with gene duplication events in monocot grasses

What is it about?

Strigolactones are a diverse class of plant hormones involved in controlling plant architecture and promoting interactions with both beneficial and parasitic symbiotic organisms. How and why they evolved is still poorly understood. We resurrected the ancestors of enzymes responsible for making strigolactones and found they showed activities which may allow them to be used to make novel hormones to combat parasitic plants and increase crop yields.

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