Rainer Melzer's Avatar

Rainer Melzer

@ucdflowerpower

Associate Professor at UCD Dublin. Plant genetics & development. Crops, agriculture, hemp, cereals. Evo-devo, transcription factors. My views.

1,304
Followers
1,790
Following
195
Posts
07.11.2024
Joined
Posts Following

Latest posts by Rainer Melzer @ucdflowerpower

Preview
Call for Papers for Upcoming Special Issues Submissions to open calls are made via our regular submissions site. When submitting, please choose the appropriate special issue title in the 'Special Section'

A reminder that the special issue of Poisonous Plants I’m guest editing with Elizabeth Neilson is ready to go. I wanted to make the deadline March but the journal convinced us to make it April 2026.
#PlantScience πŸͺ΄πŸŒΎπŸŒ±πŸŒ³
Please repost

academic.oup.com/aob/pages/sp...

27.02.2026 23:01 πŸ‘ 14 πŸ” 11 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 1
Preview
an older man with a beard is saying fly you fools ALT: an older man with a beard is saying fly you fools
03.03.2026 23:11 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Preview
A symbiotic origin of the ribosome? Abstract. The origin of life is one of the great mysteries of science. Of the multiple unsolved problems, the origin of the translation system (the means b

"we propose that the protoribosome was a parasite (...). If this view is correct, then like the spliceosome in the stem eukaryote, a repurposed host-parasite interaction led to a dramatic change in cell biology at the base of the tree of life, in this case leading to the exit from an RNA world"

02.03.2026 18:43 πŸ‘ 31 πŸ” 15 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

Plant Sciences 🌿 are really well represented on the Euro Evo Devo committee @plantevodevo-ab.bsky.social and @ucdflowerpower.bsky.social and the local organising committee with @drannisr.bsky.social and I so we hope there will be a really good turn out from the Plant Evo Devo community! 🌼🌱

26.02.2026 10:30 πŸ‘ 10 πŸ” 3 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
10th European Society for Evolutionary Developmental Biology Meeting 2026 The European Society for Evolutionary Developmental Biology is delighted to welcome you to the 10th biennial meeting, to be held at the University of Glasgow from June 9th - 12th in 2026.

We are really excited that Euro Evo Devo will take place here in Scotland from the 9th-12th June, at the University of Glasgow!

Deadline for Early Bird Registration and Abstract Submission are rapidly approaching in March so do register soon!

www.evodevoconference26.com/important-da...

26.02.2026 10:23 πŸ‘ 38 πŸ” 26 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 1
Preview
Co-translational control of protein stability and quality in plants Abstract. Proteostasis relies on the coordinated control of protein synthesis, folding, modification and degradation, and an increasingly clear picture is

My review β€œCo-translational control of protein stability and quality in plants” is now online at @jxbotany.bsky.social, in which I describe how co-translational processing and ribosome-associated quality control together establish protein stability and fate early in synthesis. tinyurl.com/5dhhz9h6

24.02.2026 09:45 πŸ‘ 41 πŸ” 24 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Post image

Emma Teeling, Professor of Zoology at University College Dublin (Ireland), will present a plenary talk at SMBE 2026 in Copenhagen.

Title: "Bats: Genomes, phylogenies, fossils and cures?"

@emmateeling.bsky.social

#SMBE2026

23.02.2026 10:00 πŸ‘ 7 πŸ” 5 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Post image

Our preprint on sex determination in Cannabis - now updated with a strata analysis and new gene expression data.
Great collaboration with @tatianagiraud.bsky.social and her team!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

23.02.2026 09:28 πŸ‘ 5 πŸ” 3 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Post image
22.02.2026 18:45 πŸ‘ 3 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Post image

Join @ucdflowerpower.bsky.social at the #SEBconference in Florence.

Submit your abstract now ⬇️
www.sebiology.org/events/seb-a...

Check out our Plant sessions ⬇️
www.sebiology.org/events/seb-a...

Book your place now ⬇️
www.sebiology.org/events/seb-a...

11.02.2026 17:23 πŸ‘ 4 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Post image

Sighle Humphreys married Donal O'Donoghue on 19 February 1935. This writer wishes Donal had 'waited until this unfortunate country was free' before marrying, as many married patriots 'eventually ignored the ills of the Motherland in the tranquillity of the domestic hearth.' #ValentinesDay

14.02.2026 09:28 πŸ‘ 5 πŸ” 6 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Preview
Women, Gender and Sexuality in Premodern Literature and Culture Welcome to Cambridge Core

Delighted to be series editor for Cambridge Elements in Women, Gender and Sexuality in Premodern Literature and Culture. If you have something cool and interesting you’d like to work with us on please get in touch (micrograph 20-30k)

www.cambridge.org/core/publica...

14.02.2026 05:08 πŸ‘ 74 πŸ” 34 πŸ’¬ 2 πŸ“Œ 1

How is it possible that I haven’t come across this account before???!!!! I want to make the flower model right now!!! #PlantSci

08.02.2026 15:27 πŸ‘ 8 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Preview
Multiscale pangenome graphs empower the genomic dissection of mixed-ploidy sugarcane species The sugarcane genus Saccharum is characterized by complex genomes with diverse ploidy levels. We developed a multiscale graph–based pangenome representation, which integrates nine genome assemblies in...

Like busses. First nothing then several at the same time.
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

10.02.2026 20:31 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0
Fossil angiosperm leaf from Dakota Fm, Kansas. Leaf is about 8cm long.

Fossil angiosperm leaf from Dakota Fm, Kansas. Leaf is about 8cm long.

A 95 million year old angiosperm leaf preserved as an impression in an iron-cemented sandstone. The original leaf may have gone, but you can still see where invertebrates nibbled it.

From Dakota Formation, Kansas. Cenomanian, probably.

#FossilFriday βš’πŸŒπŸ”¬πŸŒ±πŸƒπŸŒ³

06.02.2026 15:17 πŸ‘ 137 πŸ” 41 πŸ’¬ 4 πŸ“Œ 4
Post image

With stuff like this, the amazing thing to me is that someone had to sit down at a computer and think to themself "and now, it is time to lie to customers."

21.01.2026 13:59 πŸ‘ 200 πŸ” 24 πŸ’¬ 17 πŸ“Œ 1

Nice thread about @joannakacprzyk.bsky.social and my paper in @plantspeopleplanet.bsky.social

TL;DR: People study plants because they rock!

21.01.2026 17:00 πŸ‘ 7 πŸ” 4 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Post image

❗Decline in botanical education threatens response to climate action and food security

www.ucd.ie/newsandopini...

Research reveals what inspires people to study plant biology, a subject essential for addressing biodiversity loss, climate change, and food security.

#PlantScience 🧡1/2

21.01.2026 14:41 πŸ‘ 10 πŸ” 6 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

I wonder how many Nobel laureates assumed they got the prize partly because they were men.
With more than 90 % of the laureates being male the statistics are clear πŸ˜…

16.01.2026 19:32 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Post image

⏰ Final week to submit an abstract for MONOGRAM 2026 ⏰

πŸ“ Cambridge, UK: 23- 26 March

Don't miss out! Abstract submission closes next Friday 23rd January

🌾 Find out more πŸ‘‰ cvent.me/MM0bPo

#plantscience @monogram-uk.bsky.social

15.01.2026 08:30 πŸ‘ 7 πŸ” 7 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 1

Have you ever heard that women have more chances than men of getting grants or positions in academia? Of course you have, and here are my personal views on this. With the shocking revelation that no, it is NOT TRUEΒ ! (1/n)

13.01.2026 18:36 πŸ‘ 114 πŸ” 76 πŸ’¬ 7 πŸ“Œ 6

The smell of lentisk/mastic (Pistacia lentiscus) in the forest during summers. Actually, as a child, I was not aware that it was specifically this plant that produced this perfume. Now, as a plant scientist, I got to study P. lentiscus, and its smell always brings me inmediate childhood memories πŸ’š.

10.01.2026 12:39 πŸ‘ 3 πŸ” 3 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0
Can you share your favourite plant-related memory?

β€œI was always completely astonished by the plant landscape and the powerful calm that they can transmit to me. It's something that happens to me until now.”

Can you share your favourite plant-related memory? β€œI was always completely astonished by the plant landscape and the powerful calm that they can transmit to me. It's something that happens to me until now.”

12.01.2026 10:08 πŸ‘ 3 πŸ” 2 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Can you share your favourite plant -related memory?

β€œRose bushes near my grandma's house.”

Can you share your favourite plant -related memory? β€œRose bushes near my grandma's house.”

08.01.2026 14:25 πŸ‘ 5 πŸ” 2 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Strategies for promoting the uptake of plant biology as an education and career pathway supported by the survey of 421 plant biologists carried out.

Strategies for promoting the uptake of plant biology as an education and career pathway supported by the survey of 421 plant biologists carried out.

Inspiring the next generation of plant scientists: What we learned from 421 plant biologists

@joannakacprzyk.bsky.social and Rainer Melzer

nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

@plantmemories.bsky.social
@ucdflowerpower.bsky.social

#PlantScience

07.01.2026 14:01 πŸ‘ 18 πŸ” 14 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0
Post image
06.01.2026 15:57 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 2 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Motivation for choosing botany-related education?
My father left school at 14 and my (more intellectual) mother at 18, and I was born in a council house, so there was little expectation that I would explore tertiary education.

06.01.2026 16:01 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 2 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 2

What a fantastic story...

06.01.2026 16:02 πŸ‘ 3 πŸ” 3 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Preview
Künstliche Intelligenz: Macht KI uns dumm? Niemand muss komplizierte Texte lesen, wenn ChatGPT einem das Wichtigste schnell zusammenfasst. Die große Frage ist, ob das Gehirn dabei Entscheidendes verlernt.

This is in German (use AI to translate? ;) with a quite nuanced take.
www.zeit.de/digital/inte...

06.01.2026 15:26 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0