Peering into seeds

join Stephen and Ulises as they peer into seeds and, using imaging to understand metabolism and development, show you what they find.

A plant seed carries forward the next generation as an embryo. The growth and development of the embryo and the deposition of the storage reserves that nurture its future growth are dependent on the supply and metabolism of sugars that come from the parent plant. This process is influenced by development itself and by the structural complexity of the seed. The development of molecular-imaging methods is innovating biological sciences by enabling the integration of 3D images, localisation of gene function and metabolic information into models. We are beginning to apply these methods to understand the complexity of seed development and to use this information to investigate characters such as seed size and storage product composition, which are important agricultural traits.

Steve Rawsthorne is currently Associate Head of the Metabolic Biology Department at the John Innes Centre (JIC) and leads a programme on seed development and metabolism.

Ulises Rosas obtained his BSc in Mexico and later completed an MSc in plant breeding and biotechnology at the University of East Anglia. He is currently undertaking studies for a PhD at the JIC.

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