Trehalose-6-phosphate synthase (TPS) is a key enzyme involved in the synthesis of trehalose and has been reported to participate in regulating photosynthesis, carbohydrate metabolism, growth and development, and stress responses in various species. Currently, reports on TPS genes in soybean are scarce. This study identified 20 soybean TPS genes and their associated 10 conserved protein motifs in the soybean genome. Molecular analysis of promoter elements showed that the TPS gene promoters are rich in stress-responsive elements. After salt stress treatment, the expression of 17 TPS genes changed, with 12 genes up-regulated and 5 genes down-regulated. Haplotype and selection analyses revealed two major allelic variations in TPS8, TPS13, TPS15, TPS17, and TPS18. Notably, variants carrying TPS15^H2、TPS13^H2、TPS17^H2 and TPS18^H2 were significantly enriched in improved cultivars that underwent strong artificial selection. This study reveals the molecular characteristics of the soybean TPS gene family, their expression patterns under salt stress, and their evolutionary history, providing theoretical basis and genetic material for further elucidating the functions of soybean TPS genes and breeding salt-tolerant soybean varieties.

Tomato is usually affected by various abiotic stresses such as low temperature and drought during its growth and development. WRKY transcription factors are involved in the regulation of different plant abiotic stress responses. However, the function of tomato SlWRKY45 in abiotic stress response remains unknown. The expression analysis showed that low temperature, drought and abscisic acid (ABA) treatments could significantly induced the expression of SlWRKY45. Overexpression of SlWRKY45 improved the resistance of tomato to drought and low temperature stresses. The photosynthetic indices, antioxidase activities and proline (Pro) contents of overexpression lines (SlWRKY45-OE) were significantly higher than those of wild type (WT) under drought and low temperature treatments. While the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and malondialdehyde (MDA) contents of SlWRKY45-OE were significantly lower than those of WT under drought and low temperature treatments. The transcriptome data analysis showed that SlWRKY45 regulated tomato response to low temperature stress mainly by affecting antioxidase activities and stress response pathways. The analysis of double luciferase assay showed that SlWRKY45 could directly activate the expression of SlPOD1. Moreover, the interaction between SlWRKY45 and SlWRKY46 was confirmed by yeast two-hybrid (Y2H) and bimolecular fluorescence complementation (BiFC). These findings indicate that SlWRKY45 plays important roles in tomato resistance to low temperature and drought stresses, and provide potential gene resource in genetic improvement through molecular breeding.

Salt-alkali tolerant germplasm identification in faba bean lays the foundation for the exploration of salt-alkali tolerant genes and for the selection and breeding of salt-alkali tolerant varieties, which is of great significance for the utilization of salinized land. In this study, 400 faba bean accessions from domestic and foreign collections were subjected to stress treatment with 8 gL-1 mixed salt-alkali (NaCl, Na2CO3 and Na2SO4, pH=9.25) at germination stage. Three germination indexes such as germination rate and 13 root indexes such as root length were measured. Correlation, principal component, membership function and systematic cluster analysis were used to comprehensively evaluate and classify the salt-alkali tolerance of various accessions. The results showed that: (1) Under salt-alkali stress, overlap number was most affected, followed by the coila, and the average diameter of root was stable. (2) The number of root tips and the number of endpoints and bifurcation, the total length of root and colia and connections, the number of ends and bifurcation, colia and connections and bifurcation, and the number of connections and bifurcation, were positively correlated (P<0.01). While the total number of root and the total length of root, total projected area of root, total surface area of root, total volume of root, coila, number of connection, bifurcation number, number of overlap and total number of connection, the average diameter of roots and the number of root tip, total length of root, endpoint, coila, number of connection, number of fork, number of overlap and total number of connection, were negatively correlated (P<0.01). (3) Root total surface area, root total projected area, root total length and root total volum, can be used as the key indexes to identify the salt-alkali tolerance of faba bean at germination stage. (4) Two salt-alkali tolerant accessions H0001857 and H0002338, and three salt-alkali intolerant accessions H0001819, H0000647 and H0000971, were selected, respectively. (5) 400 faba bean accessions were divided into 4 group: group I was salt-alkali tolerance accessions, accounting for 4.5%; Group II was moderately salt-alkali tolerant accessions, constituting 19.5% of the total; Group III was weakly saline-tolerant, comprising 42.9% of the tested accessions; Group IV was salt-alkali intolerant accessions, constituting 33% of the total.The salt-alkali tolerance of faba bean was identified and comprehensively evaluated on root phenotypic and germination traits. Variation and correlation of each index, the key indexes of salt-alkali tolerance identification were identified. Extreme materials could be used for the study of salt-alkali tolerance mechanisms in faba bean, the exploration of salt-alkali tolerant genes, and the selection and breeding of salt-alkali tolerant varieties.

The genetic diversity and population structure of 146 pepper germplasm resources were analyzed based on morphological traits and SSR fluorescent molecular markers. The results of phenotypic trait diversity analysis showed that the coefficient of variation of quality traits and quantitative traits ranged from 8.22% to 267.58% and 14.35% to 72.51%, respectively, and the genetic diversity index ranged from 0.04 to 1.91 and 1.58 to 2.02, respectively. The genetic diversity of pepper germplasm resources was rich. A total of 102 alleles were detected by 22 pairs of SSR fluorescent molecular markers, with an average of 4.636 alleles per pair of primers. The effective allelic variation gene ranged from 1.191 to 5.311, the Shannon index ranged from 0.345 to 2.056, and the polymorphic information content (PIC) ranged from 0.153 to 0.795.The average genetic distance of 146 pepper germplasm resources was 0.429. Based on phenotypic and molecular marker clustering, pepper germplasm resources were divided into six and seven groups, respectively, but the correlation between the two clustering results was weak (r=0.3967). The population structure analysis divided the pepper germplasm resources into two groups, and the boundaries of different groups were obvious. In this study, the genetic diversity and population structure of 146 pepper germplasm resources were described in detail, which provided a theoretical basis for germplasm identification and new variety breeding.

A tissue culture rapid propagation system of Rosa multiflora was established using the stem segments with buds of the current-year as the experimental material. The results showed that the best explants were stem segments with axillary buds. The best disinfection method was to soak the explants in 75% ethanol for 30 seconds, and then soak them in 10% sodium hypochlorite solution for 20 minutes. The survival rate can reach around 96%. The optimal germination induction medium was MS+1.0 mg∙L–1 6-BA+0.01 mg∙L–1 NAA+0.1 mg∙L–1 GA3. The germination rate can reach around 98% after 30 days of cultivation. WPM was the best basal medium for the proliferation of sterile seedlings, and the proliferation coefficient was 2.87. The best medium for rooting was 1/2MS+1.0 mg∙L–1 6-BA+0.1 mg∙L–1 NAA, and the rooting rate can reach around 93%. The transplanting survival rate of sterile seedlings was 98%. On this basis, the transient expression system of Rosa Multiflora was established. The results showed that the optimal transformation conditions for transient expression were OD600 of 0.8, vacuum negative pressure of –0.10 MPa and vacuum suction twice for 15min each time. The transient expression efficiency can reach around 96%. The results of this study laid a foundation for the establishment of regeneration and genetic transformation system of Rosa multiflora, and also provided technical support for identifying the gene function of Rosa plants.

Protein post-translational modification is an important regulatory mechanism of protein biological function, which plays an important role in rice seed development and endosperm starch biosynthesis. With the development of proteomics technologies, in recent years, a large number of starch synthesis-related proteins in rice endosperm have been identified to undergo post-translational modification. This review summarizes the proteomic analysis results, modification sites, modification pathways and biological functions of six post-translational modifications of endosperm starch synthesis-related proteins in rice, including phosphorylation, lysine acetylation, succinylation, 2-hydroxyisobutyrylation, malonylation and ubiquitination. Among them, protein phosphorylation modification is the most studied, which plays a key role in regulating plant growth and development, and starch metabolism. Post-translational modification of starch synthesis-related proteins in rice endosperm may affect grain filling, rice starch quality and appearance quality. An in-depth understanding of protein post-translational modification is of great significance for the regulation of protein expression related to rice endosperm starch synthesis, and provides a reference for the breeding of high-yield and high-quality rice varieties.

Charophytes and land plants form a monophyletic group known as Streptophyta. Fossil and molecular evidences suggest that land plants originated from Charophytes. This article summarizes the 14 whole genomes information of 10 Charophytes and reviews the molecular mechanisms involved in the terrestrialization of plants, revealing that the expansion of gene families regulating plant hormone signal transduction and encoding key transcription factors, as well as horizontal gene transfer, are potential reasons for the pre-adaptation of Charophytes. We elucidate the role of whole-genome data of Charophytes in transcriptomics and gene function research. Moreover, we propose the importance of telomere-to-telomere genomes and pan-genome for a deeper understanding of plant terrestrialization and the necessity of integration of genomic data with biological experiments in deciphering the function and origin of Charophytes genes.

Biological small molecules, also known as monomeric compounds with relatively low molecular weight found in organisms, encompass a wide array of substances in plants, such as ions, plant hormones and metabolites. Studying the dynamic fluctuations of these small molecules in plants is crucial for analyzing their corresponding physiological functions, regulatory networks, and enhancing the precision of botanical research. Genetically encoded fluorescent biosensors/probes utilizing Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) technology serve as valuable tools for real-time monitoring of these small molecules within living organisms. These FRET biosensors/probes allow for the non-invasive visualization of specific small molecule concentrations, providing detailed information at a high resolution. Because of these unique advantages, this technique has been extensively applied in various research fields, including plant physiology, developmental biology, and environmental science. This review provides a comprehensive overview of FRET sensors/probes utilized in plant research in recent years, outlines the key design concepts, and highlights their applications and advances in detecting ions, plant hormones, and metabolites. Furthermore, this review demonstrates practical technological tools and potential research directions for elucidating the functions of small biomolecules in plants.