Genetius

The study compared two plasma‑activated water (PAW) solutions with different H₂O₂ levels, produced by a radio‑frequency glow discharge, on Arabidopsis thaliana growth and stress responses. PAW lacking detectable H₂O₂ promoted seedling growth and induced nitrogen‑assimilation genes, while H₂O₂‑containing PAW did not affect growth but enhanced root performance under heat stress; mature plants fertilized with H₂O₂‑free PAW performed comparably to nitrate controls. These results indicate PAW can replace NO₃⁻ fertilizers provided H₂O₂ levels are carefully managed.

The authors engineered a novel ethylene‑responsive promoter (EBSn) containing ten divergent natural EIN3‑binding sites and demonstrated that it provides higher sensitivity and broader tissue expression than existing reporters in Arabidopsis thaliana. The EBSn promoter successfully monitored endogenous ethylene levels and also functioned in tomato, suggesting utility for studying ethylene‑regulated processes such as fruit ripening.

The study demonstrates that N6‑methyladenosine (m6A) RNA methylation acts as a negative regulator of thermotolerance in Arabidopsis thaliana, with loss of m6A increasing heat‑responsive gene expression and mRNA stability. Heat shock triggers a transient reduction of m6A levels, which is linked to enrichment of the H3K4me3 histone mark at target loci, enhancing transcription of heat shock proteins. These findings reveal a coordinated interplay between RNA methylation and chromatin modifications that fine‑tunes the plant heat stress response.

The study examined how Arabidopsis thaliana integrates physiological, genetic, hormonal, and transcriptomic responses to combined water deficit, heat stress, and elevated CO2. Results show that stomatal aperture under these complex stress combinations is governed by a specific set of regulators, including nitric oxide, OPEN STOMATA 1, and the SLAH3 anion channel, distinct from those active under simpler stress conditions. This reveals a hierarchical stomatal stress code that could inform future research on plant resilience to global change.

The study identifies HISTONE DEACETYLASE COMPLEX 1 (HDC1) as a positive regulator of sepal size during maturation in Arabidopsis thaliana, showing that hdc1 mutants exhibit prolonged elongation due to delayed maturation. Integrated transcriptomic and proteomic analyses, together with genetic and chemical experiments, reveal that HDC1 promotes ethylene production, which in turn triggers ROS accumulation to terminate sepal growth. These findings elucidate a coordinated ethylene‑ROS signaling mechanism controlling organ size during plant development.

The study examined how heat stress alters lipid droplet (LD) number and composition in Arabidopsis thaliana roots, revealing degradation of membrane lipids and accumulation of TAGs and LDs. Proteomic and lipidomic analyses of LDs from a specific Arabidopsis mutant identified novel LD-associated proteins, including triterpene biosynthetic enzymes, whose substrates and products also accumulate in LDs, indicating LDs function as both sinks and sources during stress‑induced membrane remodeling and specialized metabolism.

The study shows that soil compaction induces ethylene production, which upregulates Auxin Response Factor1 in the root cortex and represses cellulose synthase genes, leading to altered cell wall thickness and mechanics that cause radial expansion of cortical cells. This ethylene‑mediated modulation of cell wall strength creates a stiff epidermis‑soft cortex architecture, linking hormonal signaling to root mechanical adaptation in compacted soils.

The study reveals that the Arabidopsis POLARIS (PLS) peptide binds Cu(I) via two cysteine residues, forming a high‑affinity 1:2 complex that is essential for its biological function. PLS localizes to endomembranes and interacts with the transmembrane domain of the ethylene receptor ETR1 in a copper‑dependent manner, providing a mechanism that represses ethylene responses and is regulated by auxin and ethylene levels.