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<jats:p>Grain size with high heritability and stability is an important selection target during Tartary buckwheat breeding. However, the mechanisms that regulate Tartary buckwheat grain development are unknown. We generated transcriptome and metabolome sequencing from 10 and 15 days past anthesis (DPA) grains of big grain mutant (<jats:italic>bg1</jats:italic>) and WT, and identified 4108 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) including 93 significantly up-regulated differential genes and 85 significantly down-regulated genes in both stages, simultaneously. Meanwhile, we identified DEGs involved in ubiquitin-proteasome pathway, HAI-KU (IKU) pathway, mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathway, plant hormone (auxin, brassinosteroids and cytokinins) transduction pathway and five transcription factor families, including APETALA (AP2), GROWTH-REGULATING FACTORS (GRF), AUXIN RESPONSE FACTOR (ARF), WRKY and MYB. Weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) was performed and obtained 9 core DEGs. Conjoint analyses of transcriptome and metabolome sequencing screened out 394 DEGs. Using a combined comprehensive analysis, we identified 24 potential candidate genes that encode E3 ubiquitin-protein ligase HIP1, EMBRYO-DEFECTIVE (EMB) protein, receptor-like protein kinase FERONIA (FER), kinesin-4 protein SRG1, and so on, which may be associated with the big-grain mutant <jats:italic>bg1</jats:italic>. Finally, a quantitative real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction (qRT-PCR) assay was conducted to validate the identified DEGs. Our results provide additional knowledge for identification and functions of causal candidate genes responsible for the variation in grain size and will be an invaluable resource for the genetic dissection of Tartary buckwheat high-yield molecular breeding.</jats:p>

<jats:p>Potassium (K) is an essential nutrient for plant physiological processes. Members of the HAK/KUP/KT gene family act as potassium transporters, and the family plays an important role in potassium uptake and utilization in plants. In this study, the <jats:italic>TaHAK13</jats:italic> gene was cloned from wheat and its function characterized. Real-time quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) revealed that <jats:italic>TaHAK13</jats:italic> expression was induced by environmental stress and up-regulated under drought (PEG6000), low potassium (LK), and salt (NaCl) stress. GUS staining indicated that <jats:italic>TaHAK13</jats:italic> was mainly expressed in the leaf veins, stems, and root tips in <jats:italic>Arabidopsis thaliana</jats:italic>, and expression varied with developmental stage. <jats:italic>TaHAK13</jats:italic> mediated K<jats:sup>+</jats:sup> absorption when heterologously expressed in yeast CY162 strains, and its activity was slightly stronger than that of a <jats:italic>TaHAK1</jats:italic> positive control. Subcellular localization analysis illustrated that TaHAK13 was located to the plasma membrane. When c(K<jats:sup>+</jats:sup>) ≤0.01 mM, the root length and fresh weight of <jats:italic>TaHAK13</jats:italic> transgenic lines (<jats:italic>athak5/TaHAK13</jats:italic>, Col<jats:italic>/TaHAK13</jats:italic>) were significantly higher than those of non-transgenic lines (<jats:italic>athak5</jats:italic>, Col). Non-invasive micro-test technology (NMT) indicated that the net K influx of the transgenic lines was also higher than that of the non-transgenic lines. This suggests that <jats:italic>TaHAK13</jats:italic> promotes K<jats:sup>+</jats:sup> absorption, especially in low potassium media. Membrane-based yeast two-hybrid (MbY2H) and luciferase complementation assays (LCA) showed that TaHAK13 interacted with TaNPF5.10 and TaNPF6.3. Our findings have helped to clarify the biological functions of TaHAK13 and established a theoretical framework to dissect its function in wheat.</jats:p>

<jats:p><jats:italic>Colletotrichum brevisporum</jats:italic> is an important causal pathogen of anthracnose that seriously affects the fruit quality and yield of papaya (<jats:italic>Carica papaya L.</jats:italic>). Although many genes and biological processes involved in anthracnose resistance have been reported in other species, the molecular mechanisms involved in the response or resistance to anthracnose in post-harvest papaya fruits remain unclear. In this study, we compared transcriptome changes in the post-harvest fruits of the anthracnose-susceptible papaya cultivar Y61 and the anthracnose-resistant cultivar G20 following <jats:italic>C. brevisporum</jats:italic> inoculation. More differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and differentially expressed long non-coding RNAs (DElnRNAs) were identified in G20 than in Y61, especially at 24 h post-inoculation (hpi), suggesting a prompt activation of defense responses in G20 in the first 24 h after <jats:italic>C. brevisporum</jats:italic> inoculation. These DEGs were mainly enriched in plant-pathogen interaction, phenylpropanoid biosynthesis/metabolism, and peroxisome and flavonoid biosynthesis pathways in both cultivars. However, in the first 24 hpi, the number of DEGs related to anthracnose resistance was greater in G20 than in Y61, and changes in their expression levels were faster in G20 than in Y61. We also identified a candidate anthracnose-resistant gene cluster, which consisted of 12 genes, 11 in G20 and Y61, in response to <jats:italic>C. brevisporum</jats:italic> inoculation. Moreover, 529 resistance gene analogs were identified in papaya genome, most of which responded to <jats:italic>C. brevisporum</jats:italic> inoculation and were genetically different between papaya cultivars and wild-type populations. The total expression dose of the resistance gene analogs may help papaya resist <jats:italic>C. brevisporum</jats:italic> infection. This study revealed the mechanisms underlying different anthracnose resistance between the anthracnose-resistant and anthracnose-susceptible cultivars based on gene expression, and identified some potential anthracnose resistance-related candidate genes/major regulatory factors. Our findings provided potential targets for developing novel genetic strategies to overcome anthracnose in papaya.</jats:p>

<jats:sec><jats:title>Introduction</jats:title><jats:p>Chilling injury is a major hindrance to cucumber fruit quality during cold storage.</jats:p></jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Methods and Results</jats:title><jats:p>In this study, we evaluated the effects of fucoidan on fruit quality, reactive oxygen species homeostasis, and energy metabolism in cucumbers during cold storage. The results showed that, compared with the control cucumber fruit, fucoidan-treated cucumber fruit exhibited a lower chilling injury index and less weight loss, as well as reduced electrolyte leakage and malondialdehyde content. The most pronounced effects were observed following treatment with fucoidan at 15 g/L, which resulted in increased 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl and hydroxyl radical scavenging rates and reduced superoxide anion production rate and hydrogen peroxide content. The expression and activity levels of peroxidase, catalase, and superoxide dismutase were enhanced by fucoidan treatment. Further, fucoidan treatment maintained high levels of ascorbic acid and glutathione, and high ratios of ascorbic acid/dehydroascorbate and glutathione/oxidized glutathione. Moreover, fucoidan treatment increased the activities of ascorbate peroxidase, monodehydroascorbate reductase, dehydroascorbate reductase, and glutathione reductase and their gene expression. Fucoidan treatment significantly delayed the decrease in ATP and ADP, while preventing an increase in AMP content. Finally, fucoidan treatment delayed the decrease of energy charge and the activities and gene expression of H<jats:sup>+</jats:sup>-ATPase, Ca<jats:sup>2+</jats:sup>-ATPase, cytochrome c oxidase, and succinate dehydrogenase in cucumber fruits.</jats:p></jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Conclusion</jats:title><jats:p>Altogether, our findings indicate that fucoidan can effectively enhance antioxidant capacity and maintain energy metabolism, thereby improving cucumber cold resistance during cold storage.</jats:p></jats:sec>

<jats:p>CRIPSR/Cas9 gene editing system is an effective tool for genome modification in plants. Multiple target sites are usually designed and the effective target sites are selected for editing. Upland cotton (<jats:italic>Gossypium hirsutum</jats:italic> L., hereafter cotton) is allotetraploid and is commonly considered as difficult and inefficient to transform, it is important to select the effective target sites that could result in the ideal transgenic plants with the CRISPR-induced mutations. In this study, <jats:italic>Agrobacterium rhizogenes</jats:italic>-mediated hairy root method was optimized to detect the feasibility of the target sites designed in cotton phytoene desaturase (<jats:italic>GhPDS</jats:italic>) gene. <jats:italic>A. rhizogenes</jats:italic> showed the highest hairy root induction (30%) when the bacteria were cultured until OD<jats:sub>600</jats:sub> reached to 0.8. This procedure was successfully applied to induce hairy roots in the other three cultivars (TM–1, Lumian–21, Zhongmian–49) and the mutations were detected in <jats:italic>GhPDS</jats:italic> induced by CRISPR/Cas9 system. Different degrees of base deletions at two sgRNAs (sgRNA5 and sgRNA10) designed in <jats:italic>GhPDS</jats:italic> were detected in R15 hairy roots. Furthermore, we obtained an albino transgenic cotton seeding containing CRISPR/Cas9-induced gene editing mutations in sgRNA10. The hairy root transformation system established in this study is sufficient for selecting sgRNAs in cotton, providing a technical basis for functional genomics research of cotton.</jats:p>

<jats:p>Soil acidification in tea plantation seriously reduced the yield and quality of tea. It was an effective method to use organic fertilizer for acidified soil remediation to ensure tea yield and quality. In this study, different fertilizers were used to treat the acidified tea plantation soils for 4 consecutive years to analyze the remediation effect of different fertilizers on acidified soil and their effects on tea yield and quality. The results showed that during the period of 2017-2021, the soil pH value of tea plantation (S1) with long-term use of chemical fertilizer decreased continuously, from 3.07 to 2.82. In the tea plantation (S2), the soil pH value was stable between 4.26 and 4.65 in the combination of organic fertilizer and chemical fertilizer for a long time. The tea plantation (S3) with long-term use of organic fertilizer has a stable soil pH value between 5.13 and 5.33, which is most suitable for the growth of tea trees. The analysis results of tea yield and quality indicators (tea polyphenols, theanine, amino acids, caffeine, catechin components) showed that after long-term use of chemical fertilizer in S1 tea plantation, soil pH value decreased continuously, soil acidification intensified, tea tree growth was hindered, and tea yield and quality decreased continuously. S2 tea plantation used some organic fertilizer in combination with chemical fertilizer for a long time, the soil pH value gradually improved, soil acidification weakened, and tea yield and quality improved steadily. After long-term use of organic fertilizer in S3 tea plantation, soil acidification was significantly improved, which was conducive to the normal growth of tea trees and the yield and quality of tea reached the maximum. The results of interaction analysis showed that the long-term use of chemical fertilizer had a negative effect on the growth of tea trees, and the combination of organic fertilizer and chemical fertilizer improved the growth of tea trees to some extent, but the effect was poor, while the long-term use of organic fertilizer was the most beneficial to the growth of tea trees and most conducive to ensuring the yield and quality of tea. This study provides important practical significance for the remediation and fertilizer regulation of acidified tea plantation soils. In the process of field experiment, climate is a variable factor, and attention should be paid to the effect of climate change on fertilization efficiency in subsequent experiment.</jats:p>

<jats:p>Bacterial diseases cause severe losses in the production and revenue of many fruit crops, including citrus and apple. Huanglongbing (HLB) in citrus and fire blight in apple are two deadly diseases without any cure. In this article, we introduce a novel therapy for HLB and fire blight by enhancing the innate immunity of the host plants. Specifically, we constructed <jats:italic>in silico</jats:italic> a library of chimeras containing two different host peptides with observed or predicted antibacterial activity. Subsequently, we performed bactericidal and toxicity tests <jats:italic>in vitro</jats:italic> to select a few non-toxic chimeras with high antibacterial activity. Finally, we conducted <jats:italic>ex planta</jats:italic> studies to show that not only do the chimeras clear the causative bacteria from citrus leaves with HLB and from apple leaves with fire blight but they also augment the host’s innate immunity during infection. This platform technology can be extended to design host-derived chimeras against multiple pathogenic bacteria that cause diseases in plants and animals of agricultural importance and in humans.</jats:p>

<jats:p>Phosphorus (P) is an essential macronutrient element for plant growth, and deficiency of inorganic phosphate (Pi) limits plant growth and yield. Elephant grass (<jats:italic>Pennisetum purpureum</jats:italic>) is an important fodder crop cultivated widely in tropical and subtropical areas throughout the world. However, the mechanisms underlying efficient P use in elephant grass under Pi deficiency remain poorly understood. In this study, the physiological and molecular responses of elephant grass leaves and roots to Pi deficiency were investigated. The results showed that dry weight, total P concentration, and P content decreased in Pi-deprived plants, but that acid phosphatase activity and P utilization efficiency (PUE) were higher than in Pi-sufficient plants. Regarding Pi starvation-responsive (PSR) genes, transcriptomics showed that 59 unigenes involved in Pi acquisition and transport (especially 18 <jats:italic>purple acid phosphatase</jats:italic> and 27 <jats:italic>phosphate transporter 1</jats:italic> unigenes) and 51 <jats:italic>phospholipase</jats:italic> unigenes involved in phospholipids degradation or Pi-free lipids biosynthesis, as well as 47 core unigenes involved in the synthesis of phenylpropanoids and flavonoids, were significantly up-regulated by Pi deprivation in leaves or roots. Furthermore, 43 unigenes related to Pi-independent- or inorganic pyrophosphate (PPi)-dependent bypass reactions were markedly up-regulated in Pi-deficient leaves, especially five <jats:italic>UDP-glucose pyrophosphorylase</jats:italic> and 15 <jats:italic>phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase</jats:italic> unigenes. Consistent with PSR unigene expression changes, metabolomics revealed that Pi deficiency significantly increased metabolites of Pi-free lipids, phenylpropanoids, and flavonoids in leaves and roots, but decreased phospholipid metabolites. This study reveals the mechanisms underlying the responses to Pi starvation in elephant grass leaves and roots, which provides candidate unigenes involved in efficient P use and theoretical references for the development of P-efficient elephant grass varieties.</jats:p>

<jats:p>Abiotic stresses and climate changes cause severe loss of yield and quality of crops and reduce the production area worldwide. Flooding stress curtails soybean growth, yield, and quality and ultimately threatens the global food supply chain. Flooding tolerance is a multigenic trait. Tremendous research in molecular breeding explored the potential genomic regions governing flood tolerance in soybean. The most robust way to develop flooding tolerance in soybean is by using molecular methods, including quantitative trait loci (QTL) mapping, identification of transcriptomes, transcription factor analysis, CRISPR/Cas9, and to some extent, genome-wide association studies (GWAS), and multi-omics techniques. These powerful molecular tools have deepened our knowledge about the molecular mechanism of flooding stress tolerance. Besides all this, using conventional breeding methods (hybridization, introduction, and backcrossing) and other agronomic practices is also helpful in combating the rising flooding threats to the soybean crop. The current review aims to summarize recent advancements in breeding flood-tolerant soybean, mainly by using molecular and conventional tools and their prospects. This updated picture will be a treasure trove for future researchers to comprehend the foundation of flooding tolerance in soybean and cover the given research gaps to develop tolerant soybean cultivars able to sustain growth under extreme climatic changes.</jats:p>

<jats:p>Exposure to unfavorable conditions is becoming more frequent for plants due to climate change, posing a threat to global food security. Stressful temperature, as a major environmental factor, adversely affects plant growth and development, and consequently agricultural production. Hence, development of sustainable approaches to assist plants in dealing with environmental challenges is of great importance. Compatible plant-microbe interactions and signal molecules produced within these interactions, such as bacteriocins, could be promising approaches to managing the impacts of abiotic stresses on crops. Although the use of bacteriocins in food preservation is widespread, only a small number of studies have examined their potential in agriculture. Therefore, we studied the effect of three concentrations of Thuricin17 (Th17), a plant growth-promoting rhizobacterial signal molecule produced by <jats:italic>Bacillus thuringiensis</jats:italic>, on germination and vegetative growth of canola (<jats:italic>Brassica napus</jats:italic> L.) under stressful temperatures. Canola responded positively to treatment with the bacterial signal molecule under stressful temperatures. Treatment with 10 <jats:sup>-9</jats:sup> M Th17 (Thu2) was found to significantly enhance germination rate, seed vigor index, radical and shoot length and seedling fresh weight under low temperature, and this treatment reduced germination time which would be an asset for higher latitude, short growing season climates. Likewise, Thu2 was able to alleviate the adverse effects of high temperature on germination and seed vigor. Regarding vegetative growth, interestingly, moderate high temperature with the assistance of the compound caused more growth and development than the control conditions. Conversely, low temperature negatively affected plant growth, and Th17 did not help overcome this effect. Specifically, the application of 10 <jats:sup>-9</jats:sup> (Thu2) and 10 <jats:sup>-11</jats:sup> M (Thu3) Th17 had a stimulatory effect on height, leaf area and biomass accumulation under above-optimal conditions, which could be attributed to modifications of below-ground structures, including root length, root surface, root volume and root diameter, as well as photosynthetic rate. However, no significant effects were observed under optimal conditions for almost all measured variables. Therefore, the signal compound tends to have a stimulatory impact at stressful temperatures but not under optimal conditions. Hence, supplementation with Th17 would have the potential as a plant growth promoter under stressed circumstances.</jats:p>