Genetius

The study characterizes MpACR3, the ACR3 transporter orthologue from the liverwort Marchantia polymorpha, demonstrating its role as a metalloid/proton antiporter that confers arsenic resistance and moderate antimony tolerance. An N‑terminal arsenic‑sensing domain controls MpACR3 trafficking from the Golgi to the plasma membrane upon As(III) binding, and a conserved arginine motif influences both membrane accumulation and transport activity, indicating a plant‑specific adaptation to arsenic toxicity.

Using comparative transcriptomics, the study examined how Fusarium oxysporum isolates with different lifestyles on angiosperms adapt to the non‑vascular liverwort Marchantia polymorpha. Core effectors on shared genomic regions are actively transcribed in the bryophyte, while lineage‑specific effectors are not, and fast core chromosomes show heightened activation, indicating a conserved role in fungus‑plant compatibility. Loss of a core‑cluster effector disrupts regulation of other core effectors, highlighting essential gene networks across plant lineages.

Phylogenetic analysis reveals that non‑seed plants, exemplified by the liverwort Marchantia polymorpha, possess a streamlined repertoire of cyclin and CDK genes, with only three cyclins active in a phase‑specific manner during vegetative development. Single‑cell RNA‑seq and fluorescent reporter assays, combined with functional overexpression studies, demonstrate the distinct, non‑redundant roles of MpCYCD;1, MpCYCA, and MpCYCB;1 in G1 entry, S‑phase progression, and G2/M transition, respectively.

Chromatin accessibility profiling and transcriptomics of Marchantia polymorpha heat‑shock transcription factor (HSF) mutants reveal that HSFA1 governs the placement of cis‑regulatory elements for heat‑induced gene activation, a mechanism conserved across plants, mice, and humans. Integrated gene regulatory network modeling identifies MpWRKY10 and MpABI5B as indirect regulators linking phenylpropanoid and stress pathways, while abscisic acid influences gene expression downstream of HSFA1 without broadly reshaping chromatin. A cross‑species, cross‑condition machine‑learning framework successfully predicts chromatin accessibility and expression, underscoring a conserved regulatory logic in stress responses.

The study mapped the subcellular localization of isoprenoid biosynthetic enzymes in Marchantia polymorpha, confirming most predictions and identifying oil body cells as primary sites of terpene synthesis. Overexpression and CRISPR knockout of the ABC transporter ABCG1 revealed its essential role in retaining sesquiterpenes within oil bodies, while attempts to boost heterologous diterpene and triterpene production in oil bodies did not increase yields.