Revealing the intrinsic relationship between gene interactions and phenotypes is a key issue in life science research. Most phenotypes are controlled by multiple genes in a coordinated manner, exhibiting complex genetic effects such as dominance and epistasis in addition to additive effects. In a recent study, a “hybrid” population of rice containing 18 421 recombinant inbred lines was constructed, successfully identifying 96 high-confidence candidate genes controlling 16 agronomic traits. The study analyzed the epistatic effects among genes, constructed a genetic interaction network consisting of 19 hub genes, revealed potential interactions among genes, and discovered 170 “masking” epistatic interac-tions. This research provides important data and material resources for genetic studies in rice, establishes a new paradigm for crop genetics research, greatly accelerates the discovery of genes related to important traits, advances the functional analysis of quantitative trait gene interactions, and provides genetic resources and theoretical support for mole-cular breeding.

The APETALA3/DEFICIENS (AP3/DEF) gene is a B-class gene of the MADS-box gene family, which is mainly involved in the regulation of petal and stamen development during flower development. Cloning and analysis of the AP3/DEF homologous genes from Rhus chinensis can help exploring their role in the development of stamen. The CDS of AP3/DEF homologous gene was obtained using RT-PCR; its sequence and structural domains were compared and analyzed by NCBI CD Search; interactions between AP3/DEF homologous proteins and other MADS-box transcription factors in R. chinensis were verified by using yeast two-hybrid system; real-time fluorescence PCR was used to analyze the spatial and temporal expression patterns of the AP3/DEF homologous genes; overexpression in Arabidopsis was conducted to verify the function of the AP3/DEF homologous genes in flower organ development. Two coding sequences of AP3/ DEF homologous genes in R. chinensis were cloned and named RcAP3 (GenBank: OR962160) and RcTM6 (GenBank: OR962159). Based on the alignment of their conserved amino acid domains and phylogenetic analysis, these two protein sequences showed the closest genetic relationship to the AP3/DEF homologous gene-encoded proteins in the Anacardiaceae family, including Mangifera indica and Pistacia vera. The yeast two-hybrid results showed that RcAP3 and RcTM6 interacted with the B-class protein RcPI, the C-class proteins RcAG and Rcag in R. chinensis, but not with the A-class and E-class proteins. Real-time fluorescence quantification results demonstrated that RcAP3 and RcTM6 were highly expressed during the rapid growth stage of flower buds in different sexes of R. chinensis, with lower expression levels during the early bud development and after flowering. RcAP3 exhibited high expression levels during buds differentiation in female, male, and hermaphrodite flowers, while RcTM6 showed significant expression in hermaphrodite flowers and very low expression in male and female flowers. During the rapid growth stage of hermaphrodite flowers, RcAP3 was highly expressed in both petals and stamens with minimal differences, whereas RcTM6 showed significantly higher expression in stamens compared to other floral organs. RcAP3 could restore the petal and stamen phenotypes in the ap3-3 mutant of Arabidopsis, while overexpression of RcTM6 resulted in shortened petals, stamens, and aborted ovaries in Arabidopsis. Functional differentiation exists between the AP3/DEF subfamily homologous genes, RcAP3 and RcTM6. RcAP3 promotes petal and stamen development, while RcTM6 inhibits stamen development. These findings provide a foundation for further research on the molecular mechanisms underlying sex differentiation in R. chinensis.

Phosphorus is one of the indispensable nutrients for plant growth and development. Orthophosphate (P) content in the soil is particularly rich, but due to the fixation of the soil, the effective phosphorus content that can be absorbed and utilized by plants is not high. Therefore improving the absorption and utilization capacity of plants to soil phosphorus, or optimizing the application of phosphate fertilizer has become an urgent problem that needs to be solved. The content of phosphite (PH) in soil is second only after orthophosphate, which has the characteristics of higher solubili- ty, two-way transport between plant xylem and phloem, but is not easy to be fixed by soil. Research on phosphite as phosphate fertilizer to replace orthophosphate fertilizer and phosphite-tolerant crop varieties breeding has rarely been reported. Therefore, in this study, five introduced potato (Solanum tuberosum) genotypes and one commercial variety Qingshu No.9 (QS9) were selected as research materials, and the seedlings were directly planted into the test field after domestication and refining, and normal phosphate fertilizer treatment and phosphite substitution treatment were set up to determine the phenotype, photosynthesis, dry matter and other indicators of different genotypes. Moreover, the phosphite tolerant coefficient (PTC) of each indicator was used as the measurement basis. Comprehensive evaluation of the PH resistance of different potato genotypes was conducted based on principal component analysis and other methods. The obtained results showed that the six potato varieties can be classified into three types: highly phosphite-tolerant (C115, and D13), weakly phosphite-tolerant (C20, C31, and QS9) and phosphite-sensitive (C80). This study evaluated the tole- rance of different potato genotypes to phosphite, thus providing scientific basis for the selection of phosphite-tolerant varieties and the development of new phosphite fertilizers.

Plants inevitably face a multitude of abiotic stresses during their growth and development stages. Drought stress significantly hampers crop growth and reduces yield. The plant HVA22 protein is characterized by the TB2/DP1 structural domain and is implicated in the modulation of plant growth, development, and responses to abiotic stress. However, its precise function in the context of drought stress response in tomato remains to be elucidated. Therefore, in this study, we investigated the functional role of the tomato SlHVA22l gene in drought tolerance. The results showed that the amino acid sequence of SlHVA22l exhibits a higher degree of sequence similarity to that of homologous HVA22l proteins found in other dicotyledonous plants. Furthermore, the expression pattern analysis revealed a significant upregulation of the SlHVA22l gene in response to drought stress and phytohormones (ABA and MeJA). Moreover, the function of the SlHVA22l gene in drought tolerance was subsequently verified by yeast heterologous expression and silencing of the endogenous SlHVA22l gene in tomato via virus-induced gene silencing. The silenced plants exhibited higher H₂O₂ and malondialdehyde contents, as well as lower O₂^-. scavenging after drought treatment. Moreover, the activities of superoxide dismutase, peroxidase, catalase, and ascorbate peroxidase were significantly decreased in the silenced plants compared to those in the control plants. Collectively, these results indicate that the SlHVA22l gene plays an important role in tomato resistance to drought stress.

This study utilized the γ-ray-induced early-maturation, fresh-green mutant line pe-1 from indica rice as an experimental material. At the trilobal stage and the tillering stage, we observed differences in morphological characteristics between pe-1 and wild type. In addition, we measured the activity of antioxidant-related enzymes and their regulatory genes expression, chlorophyll content and chloroplast synthesis and degradation-related gene expression, and photomorphogenesis-related gene expression to detect the differences in the low light response between the pe-1 and wild type. The results showed that pe-1 exhibited less leaf yellowing, taller stature, and larger leaf area compared to wild type post-stress. The changes in chlorophyll content differed between leaves at the trilobal stage and the tillering stage. Additionally, pe-1 resulted in increased chlorophyll content and elevated levels of the stress-responsive enzymes catalase and peroxidase, as well as increased expression of related genes. This indicates enhanced reactive oxygen species sca- venging and stronger adaptability to adverse conditions under low light conditions. Moreover, pe-1 exhibited increased expression levels of genes associated with photomorphogenesis, indicating superior light perception ability under low light intensities. In summary, the pe-1 mutant shows immense potential for survival under low light stress, contributing to the breeding rice with low light tolerance.

INTRODUCTION: Phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase (PEPC) is a key enzyme for C₄ photosynthesis that help plants to resist adversity under abiotic stress. Suaeda aralocaspica, an annual halophyte, has gradually developed a single-cell C₄ photosynthetic pathway by compartmentalizing a chlorenchyma cell into distal and proximal ends to delineate and form the four-carbon (C₄) and three-carbon (C₃) cycles through long term of evolution. This unique biochemical compartmentation pattern holds promise for introducing “C₄-like microcirculation” into C₃ plants without establishing Kranz anatomy.

RATIONALE: The PEPC gene act as an essential component of C₄ photosynthesis, but few studies have reported on the PEPC gene in single cell C₄-pathway species. To reveal the impact of the SaPEPC2 gene from S. aralocaspica on the photosynthetic performance and drought resistance of C₃ plants, we evaluated the drought resistance function and photosynthetic performance of transgenic tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) overexpressing the SaPEPC2 gene driven by its own promoter (Pro_SaPEPC2::SaPEPC2) through physiological measurements and gene expression analysis methods.

RESULTS: Our findings demonstrated that overexpressing the SaPEPC2 gene in tobacco improved leaf water retention, maintained chlorophyll stability, promoted the accumulation of osmotic adjustment substance, enhanced antioxidant enzyme activities, reduced ROS levels, mitigated the extent of membrane damage, upregulated the expression of drought-related and endogenous photosynthesis genes, and increased PEPC enzyme activity and net photosynthetic rate.

CONCLUSION: In conclusion, overexpressing the SaPEPC2 gene likely facilitates the formation of a “C₄-like microcirculation” pathway in tobacco. These results may provide the theoretical foundation for the potential utilization of the single-cell C₄ pathway PEPC genes from S. aralocaspica to breed high light-efficiency and stress-resistant crop varieties.

Overexpression of SaPEPC2 in tobacco results in stronger drought resistance and higher photosynthesis efficiency compared to non-transgenic plants.

Agropyron mongolicum is a perennial shrub grass in the Triticeae tribe of Poaceae family. It has high forage quality and tolerance to cold, drought, salt and sandstorm. Therefore, it is an excellent grass species for mining stress tolerant genes and restoring deteriorated grasslands. However, a highly efficient transformation system has yet to be established in A. mongolicum. It restricts the identification of genetic resources and the application of genetic improvement of this species. Here, we report an embryogenic callus line (ECL) #89 that was induced from the seeds of A. mongolicum cultivar Mengnong No. 1. Our studies showed the ECL #89 had high regeneration and Agrobacterium-infection efficiencies. An Agrobacterium-mediated transformation system with a transformation efficiency up to 30% was established by infecting the ECL #89 with EHA105. Additionally, we found that subcultures could decrease severely the regeneration capacity of ECL #89, which could be partially restored by adding (1 mg·L^-1) ABA or high concentration (45 g·L^-1) sucrose in the regeneration medium, from 5% to 35% and 42%, respectively. Our work will facilitate the developing of genome editing system, gene function characterization, and molecular breeding in A. mongolicum.

Dracocephalum rupestre is an important medicinal plant. However, its leaf explant regeneration system has yet to be established. Here we investigated the impact of plant growth regulators on callus induction, differentiation, adventitious bud proliferation, and rooting using field planted leaves and tissue-cultured seedling leaves of D. rupestre as explants. We found that the optimal medium for inducing callus from field planted leaves was MS+1.0 mg·L⁻¹ 6-BA+ 0.1 mg·L⁻¹ 2,4-D+1.0 mg·L⁻¹ IAA, achieving an induction rate of 84.51%. For adventitious bud differentiation, the preferred medium comprised MS+3.0 mg·L⁻¹ 6-BA+0.5 mg·L⁻¹ TDZ+0.5 mg·L⁻¹ IAA, resulting in a differentiation rate of 66.37%. Similarly, for inducing callus from tissue-cultured seedling leaves, the optimal medium included MS+2.0 mg·L⁻¹ 6-BA+0.1 mg·L⁻¹ 2,4-D+0.5 mg·L⁻¹ IAA, with an induction rate of 86.73%. The medium conductive to adventitious bud differentiation consisted of MS+2.0 mg·L⁻¹ 6-BA+2.0 mg·L⁻¹ TDZ+0.05 mg·L⁻¹ IAA, yielding a differentiation rate of 53.48%. Furthermore, the appropriate medium for adventitious bud proliferation was MS+2.0 mg·L⁻¹ 6-BA+0.05 mg·L⁻¹ NAA, achieving a proliferation rate of 83.57%. The rooting medium was 1/2MS+0.1 mg·L⁻¹ NAA+0.1 mg·L⁻¹ IBA, resulting in a rooting rate of 86.97%. Tissue-cultured seedlings exhibited optimal growth in a mixed substrate of peat and vermiculite at a ratio of 1:1 (v/v). This study successfully established a leaf explant regeneration system for D. rupestre, providing valuable technical support for the conservation and rapid propagation of its germplasm resources.

Using two different genotypes of Pinguicula cyclosecta and P. ‘Sethos’ as explants, an efficient system for adventitious bud regeneration of Pinguicula was established by studying the factors affecting regeneration. The results showed that the two kinds of Pinguicula had the same requirements for the disinfection scheme and basic medium, but the regeneration ability differed. The best medium for P. cyclosecta leaf regeneration was MS+1.0 mg∙L^-1 6-BA+0.2 mg∙L^-1 NAA, with a regeneration rate of 92.22% and a regeneration coefficient was 4.84. On MS+0.6 mg∙L^-1 6-BA+0.1 mg∙L^-1 NAA media, the proliferation coefficient of adventitious buds reached 4.98. The best medium for the leaf regeneration of P. ‘Sethos’ was MS+2.0 mg∙L^-1 6-BA+0.2 mg∙L^-1 NAA, with a regeneration rate of 77.78% and a regeneration coefficient of 6.12. On the MS+0.3 mg∙L^-1 6-BA+0.1 mg∙L^-1 NAA media, the proliferation coefficient reached 4.84. After root culture (1/2MS+0.1 mg∙L^-1 IBA), the root state of the two kinds of Pinguicula was the best. This study solved the problems of a low reproduction coefficient and difficulty in factory breeding of Pinguicula and provided technical support for its large-scale production and breeding improvement.

Global warming is now a major trend, in which temperature stress due to abnormal climate occurs frequently, posing a great challenge to the high-yield and stable agricultural production. The circadian clock, an endogenous, heritable timekeeping mechanism, endows plants with the ability to anticipate and respond rapidly to cyclic changes in external factors, which ensures that physiological and biochemical pathways are synchronized with the environment and greatly enhances plant’s ability to survive and reproduce. The temperature responses and temperature compensation are not only related to the key scientific issue of “synchronization” of the circadian clock with environmental signals, but also to the application of crop adaptation to temperature stress in agriculture. Temperature compensation refers to the fact that within a broad range of physiological temperatures, through transcriptional and post-transcriptional architecture, the clock can essentially maintain the circadian period length unchanged, ensuring that the timekeeping mechanism operates accurately. Light, temperature and humidity are closely coupled in the natural environment, and they act as timing factors, transmitting external cues to the core oscillators via the input pathway, which affects almost all processes of plant growth and development. In this review, we summarize the historical research of temperature response and compensation mechanism of plant circadian clocks, and describe the latest research progress, and also look forward to its application in crop genetic breeding and field management. We seek to provide new idea and solution to the problem of temperature stress adaptation in crops.

The plant hormone auxin regulates many processes of plant growth and development, including embryonic development, organogenesis, and tropism, as well as environmental adaptation. To perform these functions, auxin mainly depends on the typical TIR1/AFB-auxin-Aux/IAA-ARF signaling pathway. In this pathway, the canonical Aux/IAA proteins composed of four conserved domains play a key role in auxin signaling as co-receptor with TIR1/AFB. Recently, some non-canonical Aux/IAA proteins lacking conserved domain(s) were also found to be involved in the auxin response. This review focuses on the research advances of non-canonical Aux/IAA proteins on their structure, biological function and roles in auxin signal transduction, and discusses the future research directions of these proteins.

Heavy metal-associated isoprenylated plant proteins (HIPPs) are a class of proteins characterized by the presence of heavy metal-associated domains (HMA) and C-terminal isoprenylation motifs in plants. Here, we introduce the structural characteristics of the HIPPs, review their potential roles in plant development and response to environmental changes (including biotic and abiotic stresses) as well as discuss their working mechanisms underlying their participation in heavy-metal homeostasis and detoxification. This comprehensive overview aims to provide valuable insights for future research on the HIPP family across diverse plant species.

The survive of plants is mainly attributed to their complex and sophisticated immune defense system that has evolved through the process of battles against pathogens. The cloning and functional research of disease resistance (R) genes have greatly facilitated people’s understanding of plant immune defense systems. Executor (E) genes, as a new type of plant disease resistance genes, has unique disease resistance characteristics and is also an important resource for disease resistance genes, making it a research hotspot in the field of plant immunity. In recent years, significant progress has been made in the cloning and functional mechanism research of E genes, however, there is no Chinese review about them. This article comprehensively summarizes the protein sequence characteristics, interaction mechanisms with pathogens, biological functions and breeding applications of the E genes, aiming to provide important references for understanding the molecular mechanisms of plant-pathogen interactions and disease-resistant breeding of crops.