Frontiers in Plant Science最新文献

{"title":"Unraveling the signaling pathways of plant cold stress: current insights and future directions.","authors":"Chen Peng, Wei Hua, Jing Liu","doi":"10.3389/fpls.2025.1666852","DOIUrl":"10.3389/fpls.2025.1666852","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Cold stress is a major abiotic stress that seriously hinders plant growth and development, ultimately affecting crop yields. During the process of evolution, plants have evolved sophisticated adaptive strategies encompassing acclimation processes and tolerance mechanisms. Over the past two decades, substantial research breakthroughs have been made in elucidating the core components and complex regulatory networks underlying cold tolerance. This review systematically synthesizes the recent progress in three fundamental aspects: cold stress perception and signal transduction pathways, downstream physiological and molecular responses, and the pivotal regulatory roles of transcription factors (particularly CBF/DREB1 family) and cold-responsive miRNAs. In addition, we also investigated the intricate crosstalk between cold response and other biological processes including photoperiod sensing, flowering regulation, circadian rhythm, phytohormone signaling, and the dedicated discussion addresses how plants achieve metabolic and developmental trade-offs when allocating resources between cold defense and other vital traits. Looking forward, we propose four promising research directions: identifying novel cryo-sensors beyond currently known receptors, post-translational modification dynamics of CBF proteins, homeostatic control mechanisms among competing regulatory factors, and translational applications of cold stress pathways in precision breeding programs. Addressing these knowledge gaps will not only deepen our understanding of plant cold adaptation at molecular level, but also facilitate the development of climate-resilient crops through molecular design breeding.</p>","PeriodicalId":12632,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Plant Science","volume":"16 ","pages":"1666852"},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2025-09-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12505672/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145258044","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":"<i>Aureobasidium pullulans</i>: a microbiome-based perspective from global biomes to edible plant tissues.","authors":"Nina Bziuk, Birgit Wassermann, Samuel Bickel, Reza Omidvar, Andrea Manica, Gabriele Berg","doi":"10.3389/fpls.2025.1652366","DOIUrl":"10.3389/fpls.2025.1652366","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p><i>Aureobasidium pullulans</i> is a globally distributed fungus commonly found in plant-associated and anthropogenic environments. Known for its antagonistic activity against plant pathogens, it is widely used as a biocontrol agent in sustainable agriculture. Despite its prevalence in edible plant tissues and frequent environmental exposure, its broader role within microbiomes and potential relevance for human health remain underexplored. In this perspective article, we highlight the global distribution of <i>A. pullulans</i> based on publicly available sequencing data and examine its ecological function from a microbiome-based viewpoint. Our synthesis supports the view of <i>A. pullulans</i> as a safe, plant-beneficial symbiont with high value for sustainable crop protection and potential relevance for the One Health framework. Future microbiome research should further explore its functional roles within plant and human-associated microbiomes to better harness its benefits while ensuring biosafety across ecosystems.</p>","PeriodicalId":12632,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Plant Science","volume":"16 ","pages":"1652366"},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2025-09-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12505387/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145257588","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":"Fine root morphological characteristics and biomass distribution characteristics of different artificial forests in coastal salt land and their influencing factors.","authors":"Zhibao Wang, Jing Liang, Hong Jiang, Xiangbin Gao, Shouchao Yu, Chuanjie Zhou, Yuwei Guo","doi":"10.3389/fpls.2025.1633856","DOIUrl":"10.3389/fpls.2025.1633856","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>To elucidate the ecological adaptations of fine root morphological traits and biomass in tree species with different life forms to coastal saline soil, five species (<i>Robinia pseudoacacia</i>(RP), <i>Sapium sebiferum</i>(SA), <i>Salix matsudana</i>(SM), <i>Quercus virginiana</i>(QV), <i>Ligustrum lucidum</i>(LI)) were investigated using continuous root coring. Fine root morphological traits, biomass distribution, and their relationships with soil water, temperature, electrical conductivity, pH, total nitrogen, total phosphorus, and soil organic matter were analyzed to reveal species-specific adaptation strategies. Results showed significant differences (<i>P</i><0.05) in fine root morphological indices (specific root length, specific root surface area, root length density, and root surface area density). <i>RP</i> exhibited the highest specific root length (135.38 m·g^-1) and specific root surface area (1141.07 cm²·g^-1), while <i>QV</i> showed the lowest values (39.17 m·g^-1 and 315.22 cm²·g^-1, respectively). Both root length density and root surface area density decreased with increasing soil depth. Fine root biomass differed significantly among species (<i>P</i><0.01), with <i>LI</i> having the highest biomass (273.42 g·m^-2) and <i>RP</i> the lowest (77.05 g·m^-2). Vertically, biomass declined with depth; horizontally, it decreased with distance from the trunk. Root extinction coefficients indicated <i>QV</i> and <i>RP</i> as deep-rooted species, while <i>LI</i>, <i>SM</i> and <i>SA</i> were shallow-rooted. Seasonal dynamics revealed unimodal patterns in live and dead fine root biomass for <i>RP</i>, <i>LI</i>, <i>QV</i>, and <i>SA</i>. In contrast, <i>SM</i> exhibited a unimodal pattern in live fine root biomass but a distinct bimodal pattern in dead fine root biomass. Correlation analysis identified soil electrical conductivity, soil water, and total nitrogen as primary environmental drivers of fine root traits and biomass.</p>","PeriodicalId":12632,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Plant Science","volume":"16 ","pages":"1633856"},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2025-09-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12504297/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145258034","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":"Genomic sequencing combined with marker-assisted breeding effectively eliminates potential linkage drag of a target gene: a case study in tobacco.","authors":"Wenxia Gao, Wen Yu, Jinbin Lin, Zhenfu Zhao, Ningning Yin, Juxian Lai, Yazhi Cheng, Likun Huang, Chunying Li, Shunhui Chen, Weiren Wu, Shengxin Wu","doi":"10.3389/fpls.2025.1666106","DOIUrl":"10.3389/fpls.2025.1666106","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Linkage drag frequently impedes the utilization of beneficial genes from wild species in crop improvement. The <i>N</i> gene from <i>Nicotiana glutinosa</i> confers strong resistance to tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) but introduces linkage drag when introgressed into cultivated tobacco (<i>Nicotiana tabacum</i>). To address this issue, we sequenced the TMV-resistant flue-cured tobacco line 0970A and carried out comparative genomic analysis. Additionally, we used molecular markers to screen a BC₄F₁ population derived from the cross between 0970A and an elite flue-cured tobacco variety CB-1 (recurrent parent). As a result of sequencing 0970A, the <i>N</i> gene was located at the end of chromosome Nt11. The comparative genomic analysis showed that 0970A inherited approximately 3.74 Mb of <i>N. glutinosa</i> DNA (<i>N</i>-fragment) from its donor, Coker 176. From screening the BC₄F₁ population with molecular markers, a recombinant was identified. This recombinant had a significantly reduced <i>N</i>-fragment (~270 kb), which minimized the linkage drag while still maintaining resistance to TMV. This research indicates that the combination of genome sequencing and marker-assisted breeding can be successfully applied to reduce linkage drag. The findings offer valuable resources for breeding tobacco with resistance to TMV.</p>","PeriodicalId":12632,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Plant Science","volume":"16 ","pages":"1666106"},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2025-09-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12504484/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145258052","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":"Integrative approaches to nutrient management in tomato cultivation for improved sustainability and productivity.","authors":"Yubo Li, Ruifang Zhang, Chi Zhang, Qingyun Li, Lanchun Nie, Can Wang, Xin-Xin Wang","doi":"10.3389/fpls.2025.1626136","DOIUrl":"10.3389/fpls.2025.1626136","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Tomato is a vital crop within agricultural production systems and ranks among the most in-demand vegetables on the market, but tomato production faces significant challenges due to long-term cultivation practices, including soil successive cropping obstacles, nutrient imbalances, reduced microbial diversity, and the accumulation of allelopathic substances. Previous studies show that tomatoes exhibit substantial differences in yield and quality between integrated and conventional systems, primarily attributed to its high nutrient demands. This review synthesizes the most relevant scientific literature worldwide to examine the current state of knowledge regarding crop nutrition and soil fertility management in tomato production systems. It systematically analyzes the impacts of nutrient solutions, green manures, soil amendments, and biostimulants on both tomato yield and quality. The main findings indicate that conventional management methods lead to constrained tomato yields due to degraded soil fertility and inadequate nutrient supply. Therefore, integrated soil-tomato system strategies are required to enhance productivity and meet consumer demands. Additionally, this review uniquely integrates multidisciplinary approaches to highlight synergistic strategies for optimizing both yield and quality. We identify a critical gap in long-term comparative studies on soil-tomato system management and emphasize the need for consumer-oriented quality metrics in future research. By synthesizing global evidences, this work provides a comprehensive framework for sustainable tomato production beyond conventional nutrient-focused practices.</p>","PeriodicalId":12632,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Plant Science","volume":"16 ","pages":"1626136"},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2025-09-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12504189/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145258010","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":"Spatio-temporal patterns in floral resources and plant-pollinator network structure in the Alaskan Arctic.","authors":"Roxaneh S Khorsand, Zachary R Ginn, Flavia Sancier-Barbosa","doi":"10.3389/fpls.2025.1552422","DOIUrl":"10.3389/fpls.2025.1552422","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Predicting shifts in plant-pollinator communities as a result of warming requires an accurate understanding of floral availability, insect activity, and spatio-temporal patterns of plant-insect interaction. Plant-insect visitor network studies from the High Arctic have demonstrated high generalization and rapid temporal turnover, yet comparable data are lacking for the Low Arctic. We worked in two tundra plant community types on the North Slope of Alaska in 2022 and 2023 to construct the first plant-insect visitor networks for this region of the Arctic and document temporal patterns of floral resource availability and insect visitation. We found temporal differences in floral availability between community types. Both floral density and the number of species in anthesis peaked earlier in the dry heath tundra compared to the moist acidic tundra. In addition, Hymenopteran visitation rates showed a bimodal peak (early- and late-season) while Dipteran visitation rates showed a unimodal pattern. Network complexity peaked earlier in the dry compared to the moist community. Our results suggest that temporal heterogeneity in floral resources between plant community types may increase the duration of floral availability for insects at a landscape scale. Given this region's low species diversity and increasing vulnerability to extreme weather events, spatio-temporal heterogeneity in floral resources may play a critical role in the resiliency of this system.</p>","PeriodicalId":12632,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Plant Science","volume":"16 ","pages":"1552422"},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2025-09-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12504194/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145258002","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":"Genome-wide identification and transcriptomic analysis of the MAPK family provides insights into the molecular basis of disease resistance of postharvest eggplant in response to <i>Botrytis cinerea</i>.","authors":"Wenxuan Zhang, Yucheng Ming, Dongchao Ji","doi":"10.3389/fpls.2025.1680931","DOIUrl":"10.3389/fpls.2025.1680931","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Eggplant (<i>Solanum melongena</i>), an important crop for food supply, can suffer from severe gray mold rot caused by <i>Botrytis cinerea</i>, resulting in huge postharvest damage every year. Mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) cascades, important to the signal transduction pathway, were identified in many species and proved to be involved in plant growth, development, and immune response, although our knowledge of this cascade in eggplant is scarce. In this work, based on the state-of-art genome sequencing data, the MAPK cascades of eggplant were identified. The result showed that there were 117 <i>MAP3Ks</i>, 5 <i>MAP2Ks</i>, and 16 <i>MAPKs</i> in the eggplant genome. All the proteins possessed traditional MAPK domains. Phylogenetic and collinear analysis showed that eggplant MAPKs was homologous with <i>Arabidopsis</i> and tomato. <i>Cis</i>-acting element analysis indicated that eggplant MAPKs may participate in defense and stress responsiveness. Meanwhile, transcriptomic analysis of postharvest eggplant after <i>Botrytis cinerea</i> infection showed that most of the <i>MAPK</i> genes had altered expression; further functional assays indicate that SmMAP3K38 likely operates as a negative regulator of eggplant immunity against <i>Botrytis cinerea</i> infection, which provides us new insights into the molecular basis of this important crop in disease resistance to <i>Botrytis cinerea</i> and gives us new potential targets for the prevention and control of gray mold.</p>","PeriodicalId":12632,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Plant Science","volume":"16 ","pages":"1680931"},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2025-09-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12504102/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145258024","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":"Missed transplanting rate evaluation method for tobacco seedling transplanter based on UAV imagery and improved YOLOv5s.","authors":"Rui Su, Bei Yu, Yufei Sun, Ling Wang, Lei Gao, Du Chen","doi":"10.3389/fpls.2025.1659559","DOIUrl":"10.3389/fpls.2025.1659559","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Missed transplanting remains a significant challenge in the application of tobacco seedling transplanters due to the specific agronomic requirements for successful transplanting. Currently, the detection of missed transplanting rate in large-scale field tests primarily relies on manual seedling counting, a process that is notably inefficient. Traditional online detection methods, including photoelectric sensors and machine vision, suffer from problems such as complex structures and high costs. They require sensor deployment on the machine itself, making it difficult to fully meet the actual detection needs of transplanters during the R&D and testing phase. To address these limitations, this paper proposes an automated evaluation method for detecting missed transplanting rates using UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) imagery. The method integrates an improved YOLOv5s model, DeepSORT, and line-crossing counting approach. First, a second-order channel attention (SOCA) attention mechanism was incorporated into the YOLOv5s model to improve its ability to extract features for small targets. Additionally, the Spatial Pyramid Pooling Fast (SPPF) was replaced by the Simplified Spatial Pyramid Pooling-Fast (SimSPPF) to enhance the model's ability to extract multi-scale features for targets such as seedling-planted holes. The DeepSORT algorithm, combined with line-crossing counting principle, was then employed for visual tracking and dynamic counting of seedling-planted and missed-planting holes, enabling accurate evaluation of the missed transplanting rate. Test results showed that, in terms of target detection, the Precision and mAP of the improved YOLOv5s model increased by 3.9% and 5.3%, respectively, compared to the original YOLOv5s. In target tracking, the combination of the improved YOLOv5s and DeepSORT reduced the missed detection rate <i>M_m</i> and false detection rate <i>M_f</i> by 2.5% and 6.1%, respectively. Field experiments achieved an accuracy of 90.28% for the missed transplanting rate and a 10× higher detection efficiency compared to manual inspection. This method offers a novel automated solution for the rapid detection of missed transplanting rates in large-scale transplanting operations and provides valuable technical insights for evaluating the performance of other seedling transplanters.</p>","PeriodicalId":12632,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Plant Science","volume":"16 ","pages":"1659559"},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2025-09-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12504341/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145258032","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":"A naturally occurring promoter variation of <i>BrGSL-OHa</i> contributes to the conversion of gluconapin to progoitrin in <i>Brassica rapa</i> L. leaves.","authors":"Jingyi Zheng, Su Ryun Choi, Yue Jing, Wenjun Zhang, Yan Sun, Xiaonan Li, Yong Pyo Lim","doi":"10.3389/fpls.2025.1654238","DOIUrl":"10.3389/fpls.2025.1654238","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Glucosinolates (GSLs) are sulfur-rich secondary metabolites that play important roles in human health, plant defenses against pathogens and insects, and flavor. The genetic architecture of GSL biosynthesis in <i>Brassica rapa</i> L. remains poorly understood despite several mapping and gene prediction studies. This study conducted a conventional quantitative trait locus (QTL) analysis to identify putative genes regulating GSL biosynthesis in <i>B. rapa</i> in two field trials. Four consensus QTL clusters were identified for various GSL compounds. Six QTLs exhibited effects of QTL-environment interactions (Q×E), reflecting the genetic variation underlying phenotypic plasticity. QTL-Cluster2 and QTL-Cluster3 on chromosome A03 represented two genetically stable regions for major aliphatic GSLs (Ali-GSLs) without Q×E effects. Interestingly, variation in the expression of <i>BrGSL-OHa</i>, rather than gene sequence variation, explained the association between QTL-Cluster2 and gluconapin and progoitrin accumulation in <i>B. rapa</i>. Further function analysis indicated that the lack of an MYB binding site in the oil-type <i>B. rapa BrGSL-OHa</i> promoter region represented a rare non-functional allele among <i>B. rapa</i> genotypes, which prevented binding with the MYB transcription factor BrMYB29b, thereby repressing <i>BrGSL-OHa</i> transcription and inhibiting progoitrin biosynthesis. This study provides new insights regarding the molecular regulatory mechanism of GSL biosynthesis in <i>B. rapa</i>.</p>","PeriodicalId":12632,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Plant Science","volume":"16 ","pages":"1654238"},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2025-09-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12504251/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145257733","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":"<i>TfWRKY40</i> positively regulates diosgenin biosynthesis in <i>Trigonella foenum-graecum</i> L.","authors":"Chuanjia Xu, Nan Tang, Yehan Xu, Changfu Li, Yansheng Zhang","doi":"10.3389/fpls.2025.1666107","DOIUrl":"10.3389/fpls.2025.1666107","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Diosgenin is a bioactive steroidal natural product extraced from plants and serves as an important precursor for the industrial production of steroidal hormone drugs. Despite its pharmacological significance, the biosynthetic and regulatory mechanisms underlying diosgenin production in the medicinal plant <i>T. foenum-graecum</i> remain poorly understood. In this study, we identified <i>Tf</i>WRKY40, a WRKY transcription factor from <i>T. foenum-graecum</i>, whose expression strongly correlates with diosgenin accumulation. Using RNA interference and overexpression strategies combined with transcriptomic analysis and targeted metabolite quantification, we demonstrated that silencing of <i>TfWRKY40</i> led to a 67.60% reduction in diosgenin content, which was accompanied by downregulation of key biosynthetic genes or transcript variants including <i>ACAT1</i>, <i>HMGR1</i>, <i>PMK1</i>, <i>MVD</i>, <i>FPS</i>, <i>SQE2</i>, <i>CAS1</i>, <i>SMO3-1</i>, <i>SMO3-2</i>, <i>8,7-SI</i>, <i>SMO4-3</i>, <i>CYP90B50</i>, and <i>CYP82J17</i> in the transgenic hairy roots. Conversely, overexpression of <i>TfWRKY40</i> resulted in a 59.25% increase in diosgenin levels, along with upregulation of these biosynthetic genes or transcript variants. Taken together, these findings suggest that <i>TfWRKY40</i> acts as a positive regulator of diosgenin biosynthesis in <i>T. foenum-graecum</i>, likely by activating the transcription of critical pathway genes, particularly <i>CAS1</i>, <i>HMGR1</i>, and <i>CYP90B50</i>. This work highlights <i>TfWRKY40</i> as a promising target for metabolic engineering strategies aimed at enhancing diosgenin production and facilitating the development of diosgenin-derived steroidal therapeutics.</p>","PeriodicalId":12632,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Plant Science","volume":"16 ","pages":"1666107"},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2025-09-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12504280/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145257740","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}