Root-Suppressed Phenotype of Tomato Rs Mutant is Seemingly Related to Expression of Root-Meristem-Specific Sulfotransferases
Authors: Kumari, A., Gupta, P., Santisree, P., Pamei, I., Valluri,, S., Sharma, K., Venkateswara Rao, K., Shukla, S., Nama, S., Sreelakshmi, Y., Sharma, R.
The study characterizes a radiation‑induced root‑suppressed (Rs) mutant in tomato that displays dwarfism and pleiotropic defects in leaves, flowers, and fruits. Metabolite profiling and rescue with H2S donors implicate disrupted sulfur metabolism, and whole‑genome sequencing identifies promoter mutations in two root‑meristem‑specific sulfotransferase genes as likely contributors to the root phenotype.
A genome-wide survey of the white jute (Corchorus capsularis) identified 34 laccase genes, with expression profiling indicating most are active in phloem and some are up‑regulated during development and under abiotic stress. Comparative analysis with Arabidopsis and reduced expression in a low‑lignin mutant highlighted CcaLAC28 and CcaLAC32 as key candidates for regulating fibre lignification, offering targets for breeding low‑lignin jute varieties.
An ancient alkalinization factor informs Arabidopsis root development
Authors: Xhelilaj, K., von Arx, M., Biermann, D., Parvanov, A., Faiss, N., Monte, I., Klingelhuber, F., Zipfel, C., Timmermans, M., Oecking, C., Gronnier, J.
The study identifies members of the REMORIN protein family as inhibitors of plasma membrane H⁺‑ATPases, leading to extracellular pH alkalinization that modulates cell surface processes such as steroid hormone signaling and coordinates root developmental transitions in Arabidopsis thaliana. This inhibition represents an ancient mechanism predating root evolution, suggesting that extracellular pH patterning has shaped plant morphogenesis.
The authors used a bottom‑up thermodynamic modelling framework to investigate how plants decode calcium signals, starting from Ca2+ binding to EF‑hand proteins and extending to higher‑order decoding modules. They identified six universal Ca2+-decoding modules that can explain variations in calcium sensitivity among kinases and provide a theoretical basis for interpreting calcium signal amplitude and frequency in plant cells.
The study demonstrates that ELF4 is essential for recruiting ELF3 into hypocotyl nuclei at dusk, a process that enhances ELF3’s ability to repress target gene expression and limit hypocotyl elongation, especially under short‑day conditions. Subnuclear localization patterns of ELF3 differ between hypocotyl and root tissues, indicating tissue‑specific temporal regulation by ELF4.
The study genotyped 1,013 hard red spring wheat lines using SNP arrays and targeted KASP markers to track changes in genetic diversity and the distribution of dwarfing Rht alleles over a century of North American breeding. It found shifts from Rht‑D1b to Rht‑B1b dominance, identified low‑frequency dwarf alleles at Rht24 and Rht25 that have increased recently, and revealed gene interactions that can fine‑tune plant height, along with evidence of recent selection for photoperiod sensitivity.
The study examined how tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) plants respond hormonally to infection by Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato DC3000 at two different temperatures, revealing temperature‑dependent expression of marker genes for salicylic acid, jasmonic acid, and abscisic acid pathways, while ethylene‑related genes remained unchanged. These results underscore the intricate interplay between host, pathogen, and environmental conditions in shaping plant defence.
The study compared tissue‑specific transcriptomes of the Australian pitcher plant Cephalotus follicularis with existing data from the Asian pitcher plant Nepenthes gracilis to assess molecular convergence underlying their similar leaf morphologies. Both species showed overlapping gene expression in functionally equivalent tissues and shared transcriptional activation of amino‑acid metabolism and protein synthesis after feeding, while exhibiting distinct regulation of digestive enzyme genes and several cases of combined expression and protein‑sequence convergence in glandular tissues.
The study investigated whether expression of Dormancy-Associated MADS-BOX genes DAM3 and DAM4 inversely correlates with vegetative growth during semi-dormancy induction and breaking in cultivated strawberry. DAM3 and DAM4 expression showed negative correlations with leaf area and petiole length, with DAM4 particularly reflecting growth during dormancy breaking, while no cultivar-specific chill requirement or leaf-type differences were detected. These findings support DAM3 and DAM4 as regulators of semi‑dormancy in Fragaria × ananassa.
Kinase fusion proteins (KFPs) act as immune receptors conferring disease resistance in wheat and barley. The study identified an extended β‑finger motif, a Poaceae-specific feature that arose approximately 98 million years ago, present in functionally confirmed KFPs. These receptor genes are among the most highly expressed members of the KFP family, indicating that high transcript levels are linked to their resistance function.