The study introduced charge-altering mutations into the N‑terminal region of Lhcb2 in Arabidopsis thaliana lacking native Lhcb2 to assess how intrinsic charge affects LHCII phosphorylation, state‑transition efficiency, and PSI‑LHCII complex formation. The R2E mutation drastically reduced Lhcb1/2 phosphorylation, impaired state transitions, and prevented PSI‑LHCII assembly, whereas the Q9E mutation had no measurable impact, and neither mutation altered thylakoid ultrastructure. Residual state transitions in the R2E line suggest that other Stn7 substrates can partially compensate for the loss of Lhcb2 phosphorylation.

Four barley genotypes were examined under simultaneous Fusarium culmorum infection and drought, revealing genotype-dependent Fusarium Head Blight severity and largely additive transcriptomic responses dominated by drought. Co‑expression and hormone profiling linked ABA and auxin to stress‑specific gene modules, and a multiple linear regression model accurately predicted combined‑stress gene expression from single‑stress data, suggesting modular regulation.

The study examined nitrogen use strategies in the model alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii by comparing growth on ammonium, nitrate, and urea, finding similar molar nitrogen utilization efficiency under saturating conditions. Rapid nitrogen uptake and storage were demonstrated through pulse experiments, and source‑specific transcriptome analysis revealed distinct regulation of assimilation pathways and transporters, supporting a model of flexible nitrogen acquisition and storage.

The study reveals that brassinosteroids activate phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PCK) by promoting dephosphorylation of conserved Ser-62 and Thr-66 residues, a process antagonized by the GSK3-like kinase BIN2. BR‑deficient Arabidopsis mutants exhibit reduced PCK activity, while phospho‑blocking mutations confer BR‑independent activation and enhanced seedling growth, and similar regulatory mechanisms are observed in maize and sorghum leaves.

The study investigates how maternal environmental conditions, specifically temperature and light intensity, influence seed longevity in eight Arabidopsis thaliana natural accessions. Seeds developed under higher temperature (27 °C) and high light showed increased longevity, with transcriptome analysis of the Bor-4 accession revealing dynamic changes in stored mRNAs, including upregulation of antioxidant defenses and raffinose family oligosaccharides. These findings highlight the genotype‑dependent modulation of seed traits by the maternal environment.

The study generated deep proteome and phosphoproteome datasets from guard cell‑enriched tissue to examine how phosphorylation regulates stomatal movements. Comparative analysis revealed increased phosphorylation of endomembrane trafficking and vacuolar proteins in closed stomata, supporting a role for phospho‑regulated trafficking in stomatal dynamics.

The study identifies EPP1 as a fourth, conserved component of the ancestral common symbiosis pathway required for intracellular plant–microbe interactions, showing that its loss impairs arbuscular mycorrhizal colonization across diverse plant clades. EPP1 is phosphorylated by the plasma‑membrane receptor SYRMK, and this modification is essential for downstream activation of the nuclear kinase CCaMK, positioning EPP1 upstream in the signaling cascade.

The study demonstrates that ABI5‑Binding Proteins (AFPs) interact with multiple components of the core ABA signaling pathway and serve as substrates for SnRK2 kinases and PP2C phosphatases, linking them to MAP kinases and 14‑3‑3 proteins. Phosphorylation of AFP2, promoted by ABA, stabilizes the protein and influences its subcellular localization, thereby modulating its ability to inhibit ABA responses during seed germination.

The study investigates the evolutionary shift from archegonial to embryo‑sac reproduction by analyzing transcriptomes of Ginkgo reproductive organs and related species. It reveals that the angiosperm pollen‑tube guidance module MYB98‑CRP‑ECS is active in mature Ginkgo archegonia and that, while egg cell transcription is conserved, changes in the fate of other female gametophyte cells drove the transition, providing a molecular framework for this major reproductive evolution.

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.