A team of local researchers has discovered a mechanism of proteins that enables plants to effectively endure droughts.
 
The Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning said Tuesday that the team led by Gyeongsang National University Professor Yun Dae-jin found that YUCCA proteins, when manifested within plant life in large amounts, repress reactive oxygen species. 
 
Reactive oxygen species are toxic molecules within cells that are formed due to outside stress and can even kill cells. They are generated in plants under stress due to changes in environment, including drought.
 
The latest discovery was published in the online edition of the international journal, “Nature Communications.”