The study investigates the gene regulatory network (GRN) controlling flowering time in the allotetraploid crop Brassica napus by comparing its transcriptome to that of Arabidopsis thaliana. While most orthologous gene pairs show conserved expression dynamics, several flowering‑time genes display regulatory divergence, especially under cold conditions, indicating subfunctionalisation among paralogues. Despite these differences, the overall GRN topology remains similar to Arabidopsis, likely due to retention of multiple paralogues.

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 introduces the Ploidy Deviation Index (PDI) to quantify chromosome-number differences between monocot hybrids and their parents, applying it to ~200 documented hybrid cases. Analyses reveal homoploid hybrids are most common, with growth habit influencing cytogenetic outcomes, and challenge the view that polyploidy predominates in hybrid formation. The PDI framework provides a standardized tool for assessing cytogenetic constraints on hybridization across monocots.