The study investigates the subfunctionalization of duplicated GIGANTEA paralogs in Petunia x hybrida, focusing on PhGI2's role in floral transition. While RNAi silencing of PhGI2 caused mixed vegetative and reproductive phenotypes, CRISPR/Cas9-generated loss‑of‑function alleles showed that PhGI2 specifically promotes flowering without affecting vegetative growth or scent. The findings reveal that PhGI2 is essential for maintaining circadian gene expression dynamics and regulating flowering time, separating vegetative growth from reproductive timing.

The study created a system that blocks root‑mediated signaling between wheat varieties in a varietal mixture and used transcriptomic and metabolomic profiling to reveal that root chemical interactions drive reduced susceptibility to Septoria tritici blotch, with phenolic compounds emerging as key mediators. Disruption of these root signals eliminates both the disease resistance phenotype and the associated molecular reprogramming.

The study presents an optimized Agrobacterium-mediated transformation protocol for bread wheat that incorporates a GRF4‑GIF1 fusion to enhance regeneration and achieve genotype‑independent transformation across multiple cultivars. The approach consistently improves transformation efficiency while limiting pleiotropic effects, offering a versatile platform for functional genomics and gene editing in wheat.