Future crop breeding needs to consider future soils

Sajjad Raza
, 02/04/2025 | Source: Nature Plants - nature.com science feeds

Nature Plants, Published online: 02 April 2025; doi:10.1038/s41477-025-01977-z

Modern crop breeding and seed certification agencies ignore the known spatial heterogeneity of soils and develop cultivars to thrive in a ‘one-size-fits-all’ soil environment. Neglecting the evolving dynamics of soils substantially undermines the capacity of new genotypes to deliver optimal yield and stress resilience, and requires urgent consideration in future plant breeding programmes.

A step toward plant-based gelatin

Anonymous, 01/04/2025 | Source: Agriculture and Food News -- ScienceDaily

Researchers present gum tragacanth as a plant-based alternative to gelatin for creating edible films. The team developed films containing different concentrations of gelatin and gum tragacanth and monitored their survivability in water and saline solutions. They found the optimal combination of gum tragacanth and gelatin for maintaining the gelatin's gel-like behavior was a 3-to-1 ratio of the two, respectively. However, gum tragacanth's inclusion leads to a more porous film, making it prone to penetration by water or saline solutions. Though gum tragacanth cannot replace gelatin completely just yet, even a partial replacement is a step forward.

The food and fuel that farms itself

Anonymous, 01/04/2025 | Source: Agriculture and Food News -- ScienceDaily

Scientists have released new and more accurate genome sequences for five species of duckweed. Their research reveals the specific genes responsible for some of the plant's most useful traits, allowing for new commercial agriculture applications.

The future of genome editing in plants

Larry Gilbertson
, 01/04/2025 | Source: Nature Plants - nature.com science feeds

Nature Plants, Published online: 01 April 2025; doi:10.1038/s41477-025-01956-4

Future genome editing in plants will mimic the natural evolutionary processes that shape genomes. It will be used to reshape plant genomes in a manner that could have happened naturally, but more precisely and more rapidly.

Developmental innovation of inferior ovaries and flower sex orchestrated by KNOX1 in cucurbits

Zhaonian Dong
, 01/04/2025 | Source: Nature Plants - nature.com science feeds

Nature Plants, Published online: 01 April 2025; doi:10.1038/s41477-025-01950-w

This research highlights the role of a KNOX1 transcription factor in stalling receptacle growth in cucumber, leading to bisexual flowers with superior ovaries like those in tomatoes. These insights enhance our understanding of ovary formation and sex in cucurbits.

H3K36 methylation stamps transcription resistive to preserve development in plants

Yao Yao
, 31/03/2025 | Source: Nature Plants - nature.com science feeds

Nature Plants, Published online: 31 March 2025; doi:10.1038/s41477-025-01962-6

This study identifies a new chromatin state, transcription resistive, which is different from activation and silencing. This novel state is marked by H3K36me and needs interplay between SDG8 and other H3K36me methyltransferases.

Non-canonical plant metabolism

Lee J. Sweetlove
, 31/03/2025 | Source: Nature Plants - nature.com science feeds

Nature Plants, Published online: 31 March 2025; doi:10.1038/s41477-025-01965-3

This Review discusses the occurrence of non-canonical pathways in plant metabolic networks identified by modelling predictions and recent experimental evidence. It highlights how such non-canonical pathways can and should be considered for metabolic engineering to obtain valuable compounds.

Rapid formation of stable autotetraploid rice from genome-doubled F1 hybrids of <i>japonica</i>–<i>indica</i> subspecies

Xu Han
, 31/03/2025 | Source: Nature Plants - nature.com science feeds

Nature Plants, Published online: 31 March 2025; doi:10.1038/s41477-025-01966-2

This study details a process of duplicated (homoeologous) chromosome ‘scrambling’ in newly formed rice polyploids, indicating the possibility of natural ‘allo-to-autopolyploid’ evolution, with implications for polyploid crop breeding.

Horizontal gene transfer of cold shock protein genes boosted wheat adaptation and expansion

Anonymous, 31/03/2025 | Source: Nature Plants - nature.com science feeds

Nature Plants, Published online: 31 March 2025; doi:10.1038/s41477-025-01985-z

CSP-H genes (encoding cold shock proteins) were horizontally transferred from bacteria to Triticeae and improved wheat adaptation by enhancing its tolerance to various abiotic stresses. Because these genes are integrated into the recipient genome and have been positively selected for thousands of years, they provide great potential for modern transgenic engineering and synthetic biology.

RNA m<sup>6</sup>A modification meets plant hormones

Lisha Shen
, 28/03/2025 | Source: Nature Plants - nature.com science feeds

Nature Plants, Published online: 28 March 2025; doi:10.1038/s41477-025-01947-5

Hormonal control of plant physiology involves widespread m6A RNA modification. This Review discusses the crosstalk and reciprocal regulation between m6A and plant hormones, and their contributions to development and stress responses.