The study validates and quantifies biological nitrogen fixation in Mexican maize varieties and assesses a double‑haploid population derived from an elite inbred (PHZ51) crossed with these landraces. Aerial root traits show moderate to high heritability, and QTL mapping reveals multiple loci influencing root number, node occurrence, and diameter, with most favorable alleles originating from the landraces. The authors suggest that pyramiding the identified QTL into elite germplasm could enhance maize’s BNF capacity, pending field validation.

The study used transcriptomic and lipidomic profiling to investigate how chia (Salvia hispanica) leaves respond to short‑term (3 h) and prolonged (27 h) heat stress at 38 °C, revealing rapid activation of calcium‑signaling and heat‑shock pathways and reversible changes in triacylglycerol levels. Nearly all heat‑responsive genes returned to baseline expression after 24 h recovery, highlighting robust thermotolerance mechanisms that could inform improvement of other oilseed crops.

The study characterizes the protein and lipid composition of chloroplast plastoglobules in the B73 maize line during a water-deficit and recovery time course, identifying key polar and neutral lipids and abundant fibrillin proteins. Quantitative proteomics revealed a strong association between Fibrillin 4 and plastoquinone‑9, suggesting a role in redox and prenyl‑lipid metabolism, thereby establishing a foundation for leveraging plastoglobules to enhance crop drought resilience.

The study evaluated how modest temperature increases affect corn smut disease (Ustilago maydis) severity across multiple maize cultivars, generating extensive phenotypic and transcriptomic data. RNA‑seq and gene‑expression association analyses revealed temperature‑dependent expression changes, pinpointing GIBBERELLIC ACID STIMULATED TRANSCRIPT‑LIKE4 (GSL4) and γ‑aminobutyric acid as key infection factors, which were subsequently validated in vivo.

The study demonstrates that mutating maize A-type cyclin genes homologous to Arabidopsis TAM induces the formation of diploid gametes with high efficiency, leading to tetraploid progeny. This provides a viable apomeiosis component for synthetic apomixis in maize, complementing existing parthenogenesis approaches.

The study used Arabidopsis thaliana mutants with low (vtc2, vtc4) and high (vtc2/OE-VTC2) ascorbate levels to examine how ascorbate concentration affects gene expression and cellular homeostasis. Transcriptomic analysis revealed that altered ascorbate levels modulate defense and stress pathways, and that TAA1/TAR2‑mediated auxin biosynthesis is required for coping with elevated ascorbate in a light‑dependent manner.

The study performed daily large-scale glycome, transcriptome, and proteome profiling of developing fibers from the two cultivated cotton species, Gossypium barbadense and G. hirsutum, across primary and secondary cell wall stages. It identified delayed cellulose accumulation and distinct compositions of xyloglucans, homogalacturonans, rhamnogalacturonan‑I, and heteroxylans in G. barbadense, along with higher expression of specific glycosyltransferases and expansins, suggesting these molecular differences underlie the superior fiber length and strength of G. barbadense.

The study examines how the SnRK1 catalytic subunit KIN10 integrates carbon availability with root growth regulation in Arabidopsis thaliana. Loss of KIN10 reduces glucose‑induced inhibition of root elongation and triggers widespread transcriptional reprogramming of metabolic and hormonal pathways, notably affecting auxin and jasmonate signaling under sucrose supplementation. These findings highlight KIN10 as a central hub linking energy status to developmental and environmental cues in roots.

The study evaluated how acute heat stress affects early-stage rice seedlings, identifying a critical temperature threshold that impairs growth. Transcriptomic profiling of shoots and roots revealed ethylene‑responsive factors (ERFs) as central regulators, with ethylene and jasmonic acid acting upstream, and pre‑treatment with these hormones mitigated heat damage. These findings highlight ERF‑hormone interaction networks as targets for improving rice heat resilience.

The study examined how sudden changes in non‑saturating light intensity affect photosynthetic efficiency in the C4 crop maize (Zea mays) by measuring photosynthetic rates and metabolite pools over time. Decreases in irradiance caused transient buffering via large intercellular shuttle metabolites, but the system fell into a sub‑optimal metabolic state that required minutes to recover, while increases in irradiance produced delayed steady‑state photosynthesis due to enzyme regulation and the need to replenish metabolite pools, with CO2 back‑leakage and photorespiration further reducing efficiency.