The study presents a high-quality genome assembly for the nickel hyperaccumulator Noccaea caerulescens and uses it as a reference for comparative transcriptomic analyses across different N. caerulescens accessions and the non‑accumulating relative Microthlaspi perfoliatum. It identifies a limited set of metal transporters (NcHMA3, NcHMA4, NcIREG2, and NcIRT1) whose elevated expression correlates with hyperaccumulation, and demonstrates that frameshift mutations in NcIRT1 can abolish the trait, indicating an ancient, transporter‑driven origin of nickel hyperaccumulation.

The study identifies the transcription factor MdBRC1 as a key inhibitor of bud growth during the ecodormancy phase in apple (Malus domestica), directly regulating dormancy‑associated genes and interacting with the flowering promoter MdFT2 to modulate bud break. Comparative transcriptomic analysis and gain‑of‑function experiments in poplar demonstrate that MdFT2 physically binds MdBRC1, attenuating its repressive activity and acting as a molecular switch for the transition to active growth.

The study introduced full-length SOC1 genes from maize and soybean, and a partial SOC1 gene from blueberry, into tomato plants under constitutive promoters. While VcSOC1K and ZmSOC1 accelerated flowering, all three transgenes increased fruit number per plant mainly by promoting branching, and transcriptomic profiling revealed alterations in flowering, growth, and stress‑response pathways.

A comparative physiological study of persimmon cultivars with flat (Hiratanenashi) and round (Koushimaru) fruit shapes revealed that differences in cell proliferation, cell shape, and size contribute to shape variation. Principal component analysis of elliptic Fourier descriptors tracked shape changes, while histology and transcriptome profiling identified candidate genes, including a WOX13 homeobox gene, potentially governing fruit shape development.

The study investigated how plant roots promote water infiltration through dry soil layers using dye tracing in model soil microcosms. Results indicate that dissolved root exudates, possibly by altering surface tension, are the primary drivers of infiltration, with root architecture also contributing. These insights suggest that root traits influencing exudation and structure could improve drought resistance in crops.

The study examined how altering ethylene biosynthesis (ACO1) or perception (etr1.1) in a hybrid poplar (P. tremula × P. tremuloides T89) influences the assembly of root and shoot fungal and bacterial communities, using amplicon sequencing and confocal microscopy. Ethylene modulation had limited impact on the sterile plant metabolome but triggered distinct primary and secondary metabolic changes in microbe‑colonized plants, correlating with reduced fungal colonisation of shoots and increased root fungal colonisation, while arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and bacterial communities were largely unchanged.

The study investigates the role of the Arabidopsis transcription factor AtMYB93 in sulfur (S) signaling and root development, revealing that AtMYB93 mutants exhibit altered expression of S transport and metabolism genes and increased shoot S levels, while tomato plants overexpressing SlMYB93 show reduced shoot S. Transcriptomic profiling, elemental analysis, and promoter activity assays indicate that AtMYB93 contributes to root responses to S deprivation, though functional redundancy masks clear phenotypic effects on lateral and adventitious root formation.

The study performed transcriptome profiling of Cryptomeria japonica individuals from different geographic origins grown in three common gardens across Japan, assembling 77,212 transcripts guided by the species' genome. Using SNP-based genetic clustering and weighted gene co‑expression network analysis, they identified gene modules whose expression correlated with genetic differentiation, revealing that defense‑related genes are up‑regulated in Pacific‑side populations while terpenoid metabolism genes are higher in Sea‑of‑Japan populations, indicating local adaptation via regulatory changes.