The Science Studying a plant’s metabolome, or the complete set of small molecules in a biological sample, provides a snapshot of the plant’s metabolic profile at a given time, and is a key tool for understanding how plants respond to environmental changes and stressors. It reveals metabolites that can be linked to specific traits or functions, which can be useful for crop improvement and other applications. In particular, studying root exudates—the suite of substances secreted by plant … [Read more...]