Andrea Paterlini (he/him)
@apaterlini.bsky.social
Plant Molecular Biologist 🌱 Lecturer in Genetics Education at the University of Edinburgh. Tweets are my own 🌈
Reposted by Andrea Paterlini (he/him)
Best articulated here by the JCS Caveman years ago journals.biologists.com/jcs/article/...
February 4, 2026 at 6:12 PM
Best articulated here by the JCS Caveman years ago journals.biologists.com/jcs/article/...
Reposted by Andrea Paterlini (he/him)
🌱🌾🌍🌺🍄🧪🌳🐝 Botanical University Challenge #BUC2026. All this year's teams signed-up; a record 32 from around the UK and Ireland. Some new, some returning, some regular, two present in every competition since the start in 2016! Welcome to all! Which ones are you supporting?
February 3, 2026 at 11:48 AM
🌱🌾🌍🌺🍄🧪🌳🐝 Botanical University Challenge #BUC2026. All this year's teams signed-up; a record 32 from around the UK and Ireland. Some new, some returning, some regular, two present in every competition since the start in 2016! Welcome to all! Which ones are you supporting?
Reposted by Andrea Paterlini (he/him)
"But teaching helps you to be a better scientist. We tend to become overspecialized, and teaching forces you to return to fundamentals, understand them thoroughly, and communicate them clearly."
Cyril is always right, right? 💚
Cyril is always right, right? 💚
🗣️ 𝐼𝑛 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑠𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝐃𝐫. 𝐂𝐲𝐫𝐢𝐥 𝐙𝐢𝐩𝐟𝐞𝐥
Cyril Zipfel, a leading voice in plant immunity, reflects on plant immune recognition, his scientific journey, and what’s next for the field 🌱🧬
interviewed by @luisdeluna.bsky.social
👉 doi.org/10.1111/tpj.70688
Cyril Zipfel, a leading voice in plant immunity, reflects on plant immune recognition, his scientific journey, and what’s next for the field 🌱🧬
interviewed by @luisdeluna.bsky.social
👉 doi.org/10.1111/tpj.70688
February 3, 2026 at 3:33 PM
"But teaching helps you to be a better scientist. We tend to become overspecialized, and teaching forces you to return to fundamentals, understand them thoroughly, and communicate them clearly."
Cyril is always right, right? 💚
Cyril is always right, right? 💚
Reposted by Andrea Paterlini (he/him)
Reposted by Andrea Paterlini (he/him)
Out in @science.org this week: A decline in epigenetic silencing of TEs in older plant organs but not in the shoot meristem. TCX5 and TCX6 help regulate DNA methylation in this context.
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
#plantscience
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
#plantscience
Aging drives a program of DNA methylation decay in plant organs
Plants display a wide range of life spans and aging rates. Although dynamic changes to DNA methylation are a hallmark of aging in mammals, it is unclear whether similar molecular signatures reflect ra...
www.science.org
February 2, 2026 at 1:48 PM
Out in @science.org this week: A decline in epigenetic silencing of TEs in older plant organs but not in the shoot meristem. TCX5 and TCX6 help regulate DNA methylation in this context.
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
#plantscience
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
#plantscience
Reposted by Andrea Paterlini (he/him)
You can't think about a sustainable chemical industry without considering our most abundant energy source: sunlight.
So how can we engineer microbes to harness this energy for our benefit?
rdcu.be/e1VfW
So how can we engineer microbes to harness this energy for our benefit?
rdcu.be/e1VfW
Interfacing solar energy with bacterial metabolism for sustainable chemical synthesis
Nature Reviews Clean Technology - Phototrophic bacteria could be used for chemical manufacturing from various carbon sources. This Review discusses the pathways, engineering and potential...
rdcu.be
February 2, 2026 at 2:00 PM
You can't think about a sustainable chemical industry without considering our most abundant energy source: sunlight.
So how can we engineer microbes to harness this energy for our benefit?
rdcu.be/e1VfW
So how can we engineer microbes to harness this energy for our benefit?
rdcu.be/e1VfW
Reposted by Andrea Paterlini (he/him)
We continue our series of inspirational profiles of senior academics. They share tips & ideas to support early-career researchers in their journeys. Today, we hear from Prof Patrick Walsh. Prof in Biological Education and Head of Institute of Ecology & Evolution @edinburghbiology.bsky.social 🧵 1/11
February 2, 2026 at 12:02 PM
We continue our series of inspirational profiles of senior academics. They share tips & ideas to support early-career researchers in their journeys. Today, we hear from Prof Patrick Walsh. Prof in Biological Education and Head of Institute of Ecology & Evolution @edinburghbiology.bsky.social 🧵 1/11
Reposted by Andrea Paterlini (he/him)
A new blog is out on our website! 📄 Go check it out! Diego Sanchez Ganfornina from @sandyheth.bsky.social's lab talks about the field work he just completed in Scotland. He is trying to generate a lycophyte living collection – likely UK’s largest! 🌿 biology.ed.ac.uk/plant-scienc...
Blog - Bringing the wilderness to IMPS: Fieldwork in Scotland to generate a lycophyte living collection – likely UK’s largest! | Molecular Plant Sciences | Biology
This blog was written by Diego Sanchez Ganfornina, of the Molecular Palaeobotany and Evolution Group (Hetherington Lab | Biology MPEG), collating considerations and reflections through his spring fiel...
biology.ed.ac.uk
February 2, 2026 at 10:13 AM
A new blog is out on our website! 📄 Go check it out! Diego Sanchez Ganfornina from @sandyheth.bsky.social's lab talks about the field work he just completed in Scotland. He is trying to generate a lycophyte living collection – likely UK’s largest! 🌿 biology.ed.ac.uk/plant-scienc...
Reposted by Andrea Paterlini (he/him)
🎯🌾 DARWIN REVIEW 🌾🎯
Schreier et al. list gene targets and propose genetic strategies to begin engineering enhanced plasmodesmata-mediated cell-to-cell connectivity in crops, aiming to increase yield and improve climate resilience.
🔗 doi.org/10.1093/jxb/...
#PlantScience 🧪
Schreier et al. list gene targets and propose genetic strategies to begin engineering enhanced plasmodesmata-mediated cell-to-cell connectivity in crops, aiming to increase yield and improve climate resilience.
🔗 doi.org/10.1093/jxb/...
#PlantScience 🧪
February 1, 2026 at 10:10 AM
🎯🌾 DARWIN REVIEW 🌾🎯
Schreier et al. list gene targets and propose genetic strategies to begin engineering enhanced plasmodesmata-mediated cell-to-cell connectivity in crops, aiming to increase yield and improve climate resilience.
🔗 doi.org/10.1093/jxb/...
#PlantScience 🧪
Schreier et al. list gene targets and propose genetic strategies to begin engineering enhanced plasmodesmata-mediated cell-to-cell connectivity in crops, aiming to increase yield and improve climate resilience.
🔗 doi.org/10.1093/jxb/...
#PlantScience 🧪
Reposted by Andrea Paterlini (he/him)
Novel repressors of cambium activity in Arabidopsis https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.01.28.702292v1
February 1, 2026 at 10:01 AM
Novel repressors of cambium activity in Arabidopsis https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.01.28.702292v1
Reposted by Andrea Paterlini (he/him)
This week we had a special celebration. Paul (from our Plant Growth Facilities team) performed a Wassailing blessing for the young apple trees 🍎 around the institute. Wassailing is a tradition from the west country region of England - famous for its apples - and... (🧵 1/2)
January 30, 2026 at 4:29 PM
This week we had a special celebration. Paul (from our Plant Growth Facilities team) performed a Wassailing blessing for the young apple trees 🍎 around the institute. Wassailing is a tradition from the west country region of England - famous for its apples - and... (🧵 1/2)
Reposted by Andrea Paterlini (he/him)
🔎 SPECIAL ISSUE VIEWPOINT 🔎
A variety of motifs mediate protein localization at plasmodesmata. Should they be viewed as targeting or retention signals?
Barr & Tilsner explore the motifs and mechanisms underlying plasmodesmal protein localization ⚙️
🔗 doi.org/10.1093/jxb/...
#PlantScience 🧪
A variety of motifs mediate protein localization at plasmodesmata. Should they be viewed as targeting or retention signals?
Barr & Tilsner explore the motifs and mechanisms underlying plasmodesmal protein localization ⚙️
🔗 doi.org/10.1093/jxb/...
#PlantScience 🧪
January 30, 2026 at 8:00 AM
🔎 SPECIAL ISSUE VIEWPOINT 🔎
A variety of motifs mediate protein localization at plasmodesmata. Should they be viewed as targeting or retention signals?
Barr & Tilsner explore the motifs and mechanisms underlying plasmodesmal protein localization ⚙️
🔗 doi.org/10.1093/jxb/...
#PlantScience 🧪
A variety of motifs mediate protein localization at plasmodesmata. Should they be viewed as targeting or retention signals?
Barr & Tilsner explore the motifs and mechanisms underlying plasmodesmal protein localization ⚙️
🔗 doi.org/10.1093/jxb/...
#PlantScience 🧪
Reposted by Andrea Paterlini (he/him)
Arabidopsis Membrane Contact Site protein SYNAPTOTAGMIN A maintains sieve element endomembrane morphology and function https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.01.26.701828v1
January 30, 2026 at 2:01 PM
Arabidopsis Membrane Contact Site protein SYNAPTOTAGMIN A maintains sieve element endomembrane morphology and function https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.01.26.701828v1
Reposted by Andrea Paterlini (he/him)
Rewiring vascular patterning through translational control in Arabidopsis https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.01.29.702522v1
January 30, 2026 at 3:02 PM
Rewiring vascular patterning through translational control in Arabidopsis https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.01.29.702522v1
It was wonderful to present our Manifesto for Plant Science Education (published in @plantspeopleplanet.bsky.social) at the Botanic Garden Education Network (BGEN) conference today. 🌱 Thank you Lauren Baker & organising committee for the invite! nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....
A manifesto for plant science education
Plants provide oxygen, food, shelter, medicines and environmental services, without which human society could not exist. Tackling pressing and global challenges requires well-trained plant scientists...
nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
January 29, 2026 at 6:30 PM
It was wonderful to present our Manifesto for Plant Science Education (published in @plantspeopleplanet.bsky.social) at the Botanic Garden Education Network (BGEN) conference today. 🌱 Thank you Lauren Baker & organising committee for the invite! nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....
Reposted by Andrea Paterlini (he/him)
New analysis from @ucuedinburgh.bsky.social & fellow Unions.
Sizeable surplus @ Edinburgh Uni
Financial pressure is from irresponsible capital spending & depreciation
Management metrics mislead
Redundancies hit financial strength & Uni’s academic mission
www.ucuedinburgh.org.uk/blog/depreci...
Sizeable surplus @ Edinburgh Uni
Financial pressure is from irresponsible capital spending & depreciation
Management metrics mislead
Redundancies hit financial strength & Uni’s academic mission
www.ucuedinburgh.org.uk/blog/depreci...
Depreciating the University of Edinburgh into the Ground — UCU Edinburgh
There are four key takeaways from the University of Edinburgh’s 2024-25 annual report, which this post explores: The University continues to make a sizeable surplus. What financial pressures exi...
www.ucuedinburgh.org.uk
January 28, 2026 at 7:52 AM
New analysis from @ucuedinburgh.bsky.social & fellow Unions.
Sizeable surplus @ Edinburgh Uni
Financial pressure is from irresponsible capital spending & depreciation
Management metrics mislead
Redundancies hit financial strength & Uni’s academic mission
www.ucuedinburgh.org.uk/blog/depreci...
Sizeable surplus @ Edinburgh Uni
Financial pressure is from irresponsible capital spending & depreciation
Management metrics mislead
Redundancies hit financial strength & Uni’s academic mission
www.ucuedinburgh.org.uk/blog/depreci...
Reposted by Andrea Paterlini (he/him)
Out First Release in @science.org this week:
A feedback loop allows two shoot stem cell populations to respond differently to environmental conditions: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
#plantscience
A feedback loop allows two shoot stem cell populations to respond differently to environmental conditions: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
#plantscience
A negative feedback loop between TERMINAL FLOWER1 and LEAFY protects inflorescence indeterminacy
Inflorescences of flowering plants adopt diverse genetically programmed and environmentally tuned architectures. By contrast, continued maintenance of the stem-cell pool within the apical meristem is ...
www.science.org
January 23, 2026 at 1:03 PM
Out First Release in @science.org this week:
A feedback loop allows two shoot stem cell populations to respond differently to environmental conditions: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
#plantscience
A feedback loop allows two shoot stem cell populations to respond differently to environmental conditions: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
#plantscience
Reposted by Andrea Paterlini (he/him)
🧪🌱 Our paper on Genomics of Botanical Collections for the #TeachingTools collection of @theplantcell.bsky.social is out! 🎉 A wonderful publishing experience because we made a great team producing the paper but also thanks to the invaluable help of @plantteaching.bsky.social with the editing.
New Teaching Tool!
blog.aspb.org/new-teaching...
Check out the latest unit in the Teaching Tools in Plant Biology series, “Genomic Analysis of Botanical Collections: Opportunities and Challenges,” by M. Deglialberti, C. Paleni, F. Fainelli, C. Lambertini, & Silvia Manrique. @tank-silvia.bsky.social
blog.aspb.org/new-teaching...
Check out the latest unit in the Teaching Tools in Plant Biology series, “Genomic Analysis of Botanical Collections: Opportunities and Challenges,” by M. Deglialberti, C. Paleni, F. Fainelli, C. Lambertini, & Silvia Manrique. @tank-silvia.bsky.social
January 24, 2026 at 3:28 PM
🧪🌱 Our paper on Genomics of Botanical Collections for the #TeachingTools collection of @theplantcell.bsky.social is out! 🎉 A wonderful publishing experience because we made a great team producing the paper but also thanks to the invaluable help of @plantteaching.bsky.social with the editing.
Reposted by Andrea Paterlini (he/him)
Our paper on the mysterious Devonian organism Prototaxites has now finally been published! See the paper here (www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...) and our explainer thread below!
Prototaxites reconstruction by Matt Humpage
Prototaxites reconstruction by Matt Humpage
January 21, 2026 at 7:25 PM
Our paper on the mysterious Devonian organism Prototaxites has now finally been published! See the paper here (www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...) and our explainer thread below!
Prototaxites reconstruction by Matt Humpage
Prototaxites reconstruction by Matt Humpage
Reposted by Andrea Paterlini (he/him)
Congrats to @robertoskar.bsky.social for passing his PhD viva last Friday, investigating the role of mobile signals in ‘vaccinating’ plants against diseases!!🥳🎊🥳 Many thanks to examiners @jurriaanton.bsky.social and @drannisr.bsky.social !!
January 19, 2026 at 10:30 PM
Congrats to @robertoskar.bsky.social for passing his PhD viva last Friday, investigating the role of mobile signals in ‘vaccinating’ plants against diseases!!🥳🎊🥳 Many thanks to examiners @jurriaanton.bsky.social and @drannisr.bsky.social !!
Reposted by Andrea Paterlini (he/him)
A new blog is out on our website. Go check it out! Selen Dinge from @vanooijenlab.bsky.social discusses the intersection between art & science with Irene Aldazabal, fellow PhD student and artist. Irene has explored visual & spatial representations of biological time. biology.ed.ac.uk/plant-scienc...
Blog - Art and Science: sister fields, intertwined | Molecular Plant Sciences | Biology
This month, we spoke with Irene Aldazabal, an Argentinian artist and PhD researcher collaborating with Professor Gerben van Ooijen’s lab at the Institute of Molecular Plant Sciences.
biology.ed.ac.uk
January 19, 2026 at 11:11 AM
A new blog is out on our website. Go check it out! Selen Dinge from @vanooijenlab.bsky.social discusses the intersection between art & science with Irene Aldazabal, fellow PhD student and artist. Irene has explored visual & spatial representations of biological time. biology.ed.ac.uk/plant-scienc...
Reposted by Andrea Paterlini (he/him)
Come and hear me yap about the #LiverwortHunt, a citizen science project which we (@slcuplants.bsky.social) ran in 2021, and was published last year as a part of the Marchantia polymorpha pangenome paper doi.org/10.1038/s415...
January 16, 2026 at 10:15 AM
Come and hear me yap about the #LiverwortHunt, a citizen science project which we (@slcuplants.bsky.social) ran in 2021, and was published last year as a part of the Marchantia polymorpha pangenome paper doi.org/10.1038/s415...
Reposted by Andrea Paterlini (he/him)
👀 In very close collaboration with Rishi Bhalerao's group , check out our latest work how plasmodesmata act as integrators of temperature cues to prevent premature dormancy break bud tree
➡️ with imaging and data analysis support from the @bic-bordeaux.bsky.social.
rdcu.be/eY1Cv
➡️ with imaging and data analysis support from the @bic-bordeaux.bsky.social.
rdcu.be/eY1Cv
Client Challenge
rdcu.be
January 14, 2026 at 11:59 AM
👀 In very close collaboration with Rishi Bhalerao's group , check out our latest work how plasmodesmata act as integrators of temperature cues to prevent premature dormancy break bud tree
➡️ with imaging and data analysis support from the @bic-bordeaux.bsky.social.
rdcu.be/eY1Cv
➡️ with imaging and data analysis support from the @bic-bordeaux.bsky.social.
rdcu.be/eY1Cv
Reposted by Andrea Paterlini (he/him)
NEWS - New group leader outlines big, broad, shared vision
Dr Chris Whitewoods, a specialist in leaf development, will return to our institute as a tenure track group leader in 2026 🌱👉 www.jic.ac.uk/news/new-gro...
Dr Chris Whitewoods, a specialist in leaf development, will return to our institute as a tenure track group leader in 2026 🌱👉 www.jic.ac.uk/news/new-gro...
January 9, 2026 at 4:06 PM
NEWS - New group leader outlines big, broad, shared vision
Dr Chris Whitewoods, a specialist in leaf development, will return to our institute as a tenure track group leader in 2026 🌱👉 www.jic.ac.uk/news/new-gro...
Dr Chris Whitewoods, a specialist in leaf development, will return to our institute as a tenure track group leader in 2026 🌱👉 www.jic.ac.uk/news/new-gro...