Strigolactones and shoot branching: a new trick for a young dog.

Strigolactones secreted by plant roots are exploited by parasitic plants as germination triggers, making their synthesis and signaling important targets for crop protection. Meanwhile, genetic analyses have identified several genes required for the synthesis and signaling of an unknown shoot branching inhibitor. Two recent papers unite these two fields, showing that strigolactones control shoot branching.