{"title":"Occurrence and characterization of tricin-lignin","authors":"Wu Lan , Lydia Pui Ying Lam , Andy Lui , Clive Lo","doi":"10.1016/j.pbi.2025.102703","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.pbi.2025.102703","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Tricin, a flavonoid, is a noncanonical lignin monomer present in grasses and other monocots, but rarely in dicots. This review explores the latest discovery of biosynthesis, transport, and distribution of tricin in plant cell walls, and discusses the missing gaps in this engaging topic. Tricin biosynthesis in grasses involves the phenylpropanoid and flavonoid pathways, with distinct enzymatic processes leading to tricin incorporation into lignin polymers. Methods for characterizing and quantifying tricin in lignin are also highlighted, including NMR spectroscopy and chromatographic techniques with discussion of challenges associated with its low abundance in plant tissues. The stability of tricin during biomass pretreatment processes is discussed, with findings indicating that acidic and alkaline conditions degrade tricin, while milder pretreatments preserve its structure. These insights underscore the potential of tricin in enhancing the functionality of lignin for sustainable bioprocessing, offering promising applications in pharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals, and biorefinery industries.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11003,"journal":{"name":"Current opinion in plant biology","volume":"85 ","pages":"Article 102703"},"PeriodicalIF":8.3,"publicationDate":"2025-03-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143686867","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Plant sphingolipids: Subcellular distributions and functions","authors":"Chang Yang, Yin-Ming Lai, Nan Yao","doi":"10.1016/j.pbi.2025.102704","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.pbi.2025.102704","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Sphingolipids are common membrane components that maintain membrane structural integrity and function as signaling molecules. Different sphingolipids have specific functions and are unevenly distributed across the membranes of various organelles and subcellular compartments. In this review, we survey the sphingolipidomes of different subcellular structures in Arabidopsis (<em>Arabidopsis thaliana</em>) cells and provide a detailed account of the functions of specific sphingolipids at each location. For example, glycosphingolipids, including glucosylceramide and glycosyl inositol phosphoceramide, mainly function in membranes, whereas simple sphingolipids, including free long-chain bases and ceramide, may have important signaling roles in the plasma membrane, mitochondria, and nucleus during plant stress responses and cell death. This review thus offers a broad perspective of the multifaceted roles of plant sphingolipids in different locations in the plant cell.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11003,"journal":{"name":"Current opinion in plant biology","volume":"85 ","pages":"Article 102704"},"PeriodicalIF":8.3,"publicationDate":"2025-03-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143686868","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Anya Lillemor Lindström Battle, Lee James Sweetlove
{"title":"Bryophytes as metabolic engineering platforms","authors":"Anya Lillemor Lindström Battle, Lee James Sweetlove","doi":"10.1016/j.pbi.2025.102702","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.pbi.2025.102702","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Metabolic engineering of plants offers significant advantages over many microbial systems such as cost-effective scalability and carbon autotrophy. Bryophytes have emerged as promising testbeds for plant metabolic engineering due to their rapid transformation and haploid-dominant lifecycle. The liverwort <em>Marchantia polymorpha</em> and the moss <em>Physcomitrium patens</em> are the best studied bryophytes and an expanding toolkit of genetic resources for both species allows for efficient pathway engineering. Bryophyte metabolism, while broadly conserved with seed plants, exhibits distinct features such as high diversity and amounts of terpenoids and very long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (vlcPFAs). In this review, we summarise the relatively limited understanding of bryophyte metabolism and how it diverges from seed plants. We argue that the success of bryophytes as testbed species will require new quantitative knowledge of fluxes in central metabolism and especially those that facilitate high rates of terpenoid and vlcPFA biosynthesis.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11003,"journal":{"name":"Current opinion in plant biology","volume":"85 ","pages":"Article 102702"},"PeriodicalIF":8.3,"publicationDate":"2025-03-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143673254","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Biosynthesis of triterpenoids in plants: Pathways, regulation, and biological functions","authors":"Huan Dong, Xiaoquan Qi","doi":"10.1016/j.pbi.2025.102701","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.pbi.2025.102701","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Plant triterpenoids, a vast and diverse group of natural compounds derived from six isoprene units, exhibit an extensive array of structural diversity and remarkable biological activities. In this review, we update the recent research progress in the catalytic mechanisms underlying triterpene synthesis and summarize the current insights into the biosynthetic pathways and regulatory mechanisms of triterpenoids. We emphasize the biosynthesis of pharmacologically active triterpenoids and the role of triterpenoid synthesis in plant growth, development, defense mechanisms, and plant–microbe interactions. This insight review offers a comprehensive perspective on the applications and future avenues of triterpenoid research.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11003,"journal":{"name":"Current opinion in plant biology","volume":"85 ","pages":"Article 102701"},"PeriodicalIF":8.3,"publicationDate":"2025-03-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143669386","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Engineering nitrogen and carbon fixation for next-generation plants","authors":"Zehong Zhao , Alisdair R. Fernie , Youjun Zhang","doi":"10.1016/j.pbi.2025.102699","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.pbi.2025.102699","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Improving plant nitrogen (N) and carbon (C) acquisition and assimilation is a major challenge for global agriculture, food security, and ecological sustainability. Emerging synthetic biology techniques, including directed evolution, artificial intelligence (AI)-guided enzyme design, and metabolic engineering, have opened new avenues for optimizing nitrogenase to fix atmospheric N<sub>2</sub> in plants, engineering <em>Rhizobia</em> or other nitrogen-fixing bacteria for symbiotic associations with both legume and nonlegume crops, and enhancing carbon fixation to improve photosynthetic efficiency and source-to-sink assimilate fluxes. Here, we discuss the potential for engineering nitrogen fixation and carbon fixation mechanisms in plants, from rational and AI-driven optimization of nitrogen and carbon fixation cycles. Furthermore, we discuss strategies for modifying source-to-sink relationships to promote robust growth in extreme conditions, such as arid deserts, saline-alkaline soils, or even extraterrestrial environments like Mars. The combined engineering of N and C pathways promises a new generation of crops with enhanced productivity, resource-use efficiency, and resilience. Finally, we explore future perspectives, focusing on the integration of enzyme engineering via directed evolution and computational design to accelerate metabolic innovation in plants.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11003,"journal":{"name":"Current opinion in plant biology","volume":"85 ","pages":"Article 102699"},"PeriodicalIF":8.3,"publicationDate":"2025-03-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143578730","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Yaoyao Li , Wenjie Huang , Huijun Gao , Ganjun Yi , Shijuan Yan
{"title":"Regulation of starch metabolism in banana fruit: Mechanisms shaping the nutritional quality","authors":"Yaoyao Li , Wenjie Huang , Huijun Gao , Ganjun Yi , Shijuan Yan","doi":"10.1016/j.pbi.2025.102698","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.pbi.2025.102698","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Bananas are nutrient-rich fruits that provide starch, essential vitamins, and minerals and play significant importance in the global economy through extensive production, trade, and consumption. Nutrient metabolic processes, such as starch-to-sugar conversion, are fundamental in shaping the quality of banana fruits. Starch accounts for 15%–35% of fresh fruit weight, and its degradation mediated by ethylene signaling components can increase sweetness, soften texture, and increase the palatability of banana fruit. This review summarizes recent advances in the regulatory mechanism underlying starch metabolism in banana fruits, highlights key research questions for future investigation, and proposes promising strategies to manipulate starch levels to develop new banana varieties with enhanced nutritional quality.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11003,"journal":{"name":"Current opinion in plant biology","volume":"84 ","pages":"Article 102698"},"PeriodicalIF":8.3,"publicationDate":"2025-02-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143479077","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Punita Lalchand , Didier-Deschamps Ashley , Xue Pan
{"title":"Biomolecular condensates at the plasma membrane: Insights into plant cell signaling","authors":"Punita Lalchand , Didier-Deschamps Ashley , Xue Pan","doi":"10.1016/j.pbi.2025.102697","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.pbi.2025.102697","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Biomolecular condensates, often formed through liquid–liquid phase separation (LLPS), are increasingly recognized as a critical mechanism for cellular compartmentalization across diverse biological systems. Although traditionally considered membrane-less entities, recent discoveries highlight their dynamic interactions with membranes, where they regulate various processes, including signal transduction. Signaling lipids are observed in condensates. Despite these advancements, our understanding of such condensates in plant biology remains limited. This review highlights recent studies involving membrane-associated condensates in plants, focusing particularly on their interactions with the plasma membrane (PM) and their potential roles in PM-based signaling.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11003,"journal":{"name":"Current opinion in plant biology","volume":"84 ","pages":"Article 102697"},"PeriodicalIF":8.3,"publicationDate":"2025-02-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143479078","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Light, CO2, and carbon storage in microalgae","authors":"Yasuyo Yamaoka , Dimitris Petroutsos , Sujeong Je , Takashi Yamano , Yonghua Li-Beisson","doi":"10.1016/j.pbi.2025.102696","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.pbi.2025.102696","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Microalgae exhibit remarkable adaptability to environmental changes by integrating light and CO<sub>2</sub> signals into regulatory networks that govern energy conversion, carbon fixation, and storage. Light serves not only as an energy source for photosynthesis but also as a regulatory signal mediated by photoreceptors. Specific light spectra distinctly influence carbon allocation, driving lipid or starch biosynthesis by altering transcriptional and metabolic pathways. The ratio of ATP to NADPH imbalances significantly impact carbon allocation toward lipid or starch production. To maintain this balance, alternative electron flow pathways play critical roles, while inter-organelle redox exchanges regulate cellular energy states to support efficient carbon storage. The CO<sub>2</sub>-concentrating mechanism (CCM) enhances photosynthetic efficiency by concentrating CO<sub>2</sub> at Rubisco, energized by ATP from photosynthetic electron transport. This review examines how light receptors, energy-producing pathways, and the CCM interact to regulate carbon metabolism in microalgae, emphasizing their collective roles in balancing energy supply and carbon storage.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11003,"journal":{"name":"Current opinion in plant biology","volume":"84 ","pages":"Article 102696"},"PeriodicalIF":8.3,"publicationDate":"2025-02-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143454700","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Steroidal compounds in Paris polyphylla:structure, biological activities, and biosynthesis","authors":"Xin Hua , Chengxi Kou , Fengge Wang , Jianfeng Zhang , Jifeng Yuan , Zheyong Xue","doi":"10.1016/j.pbi.2025.102695","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.pbi.2025.102695","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Steroidal compounds are chemical constituents found in the traditional medicinal plant <em>Paris polyphylla</em>, known for their significant pharmacological activities. Due to their complex structures, the biosynthetic pathways of these compounds have garnered considerable attention. In recent years, substantial progress has been made in elucidating the biosynthetic pathways of steroidal compounds from <em>P. polyphylla</em>, with several complete biosynthetic routes being fully characterized. The de novo synthesis of diosgenin has been successfully achieved in both <em>Saccharomyces cerevisiae</em> and <em>Nicotiana benthamiana</em> using various metabolic engineering techniques. Herein, we summarize the latest research progress regarding the structural classification, biological activities, and biosynthesis studies of steroidal compounds from <em>P. polyphylla</em>.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11003,"journal":{"name":"Current opinion in plant biology","volume":"84 ","pages":"Article 102695"},"PeriodicalIF":8.3,"publicationDate":"2025-02-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143446090","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}