Nature PlantsPub Date : 2026-07-20DOI: 10.1038/s41477-026-02359-9
{"title":"Europe’s two tiers of genome editing","authors":"","doi":"10.1038/s41477-026-02359-9","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41477-026-02359-9","url":null,"abstract":"Nature Plants has existed for eleven and a half years, during which time the European Union has been constantly struggling towards a clear stance on genome engineering. Perhaps they have finally found it.","PeriodicalId":18904,"journal":{"name":"Nature Plants","volume":"12 7","pages":"1303-1303"},"PeriodicalIF":15.0,"publicationDate":"2026-07-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.nature.comhttps://www.nature.com/articles/s41477-026-02359-9.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148519486","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nature PlantsPub Date : 2026-07-17DOI: 10.1038/s41477-026-02332-6
Daniel Ortiz-Barrientos, David Jordan, Mark Cooper
{"title":"The hidden geometry of breeding constraints","authors":"Daniel Ortiz-Barrientos, David Jordan, Mark Cooper","doi":"10.1038/s41477-026-02332-6","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41477-026-02332-6","url":null,"abstract":"Thousands of years of breeding and agronomic change have pushed genetic change into increasingly narrow corridors. The approach has worked effectively, but gains are slowing and much genetic variance expected from heritability estimates is not readily found. We propose that breeding constraints, the practical demands that make crops useful, force genetic exploration onto curved, lower-dimensional surfaces within the larger landscape of possibility. In crops, these constraints arise jointly from genetic choices and management decisions about fertilizer, sowing density, weed and pest control, irrigation and harvest logistics, which together define the range of environments in which genotypes are routinely grown. These constraints may hide certain classes of gene interactions from breeding programmes, creating an additive appearance where the underlying biology may remain epistatic. Selection moves by additive steps, but on a curved, constrained surface: the speed looks additive, but the long-term path follows the geometry of the constraints. This framework particularly applies to major crop species subjected to intensive directional selection over many generations for stable agricultural requirements, the context where constraint-based filtering of genetic variance is most pronounced. When selection has had less opportunity to impose its effects and gene interactions are weak, this geometric filtering may be less consequential. But when epistatic effects shape fitness, constraints could hide substantial genetic potential behind these boundaries. This Perspective suggests potential escape routes from current plateaus: strategic wide crosses, transgene combinations and targeted edits that access genetic variance currently excluded by constraints. Plant breeding programmes based on additive models have performed well, but their gains are plateauing. This framework integrates commercial breeding experience, mathematical rigour and evolutionary genetics to uncover the power and limitations of plant breeding.","PeriodicalId":18904,"journal":{"name":"Nature Plants","volume":"12 7","pages":"1316-1324"},"PeriodicalIF":15.0,"publicationDate":"2026-07-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148459571","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"N1-methyladenosine mRNA methylation in Arabidopsis","authors":"Yunzhuo Ke, Huanwei Huang, Zhi-Yang Hou, Mengjiao Zhang, Xuemin Zhang, Yao Qin, Linxia Li, Yixin Wang, Cuiling Miao, Zexuan Wu, Changmei Hua, Lisha Shen, Hao Yu, Zhe Liang","doi":"10.1038/s41477-026-02343-3","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41477-026-02343-3","url":null,"abstract":"N1-methyladenosine (m1A) is a recently identified mRNA methylation mark that affects gene expression and translation. In the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana, its landscape and function remain uncharacterized. Here we present base-resolution m1A methylomes across diverse Arabidopsis tissues and show that m1A is enriched in the 5′ untranslated region and preferentially localizes to highly expressed genes, negatively correlating with mRNA translation. We demonstrate that TRM6 and TRM61 form the m1A methyltransferase complex and interact with ATH3 to regulate m1A levels. Notably, we identify previously unknown m1A readers, including CP33B and ECT2. Functional analyses reveal that m1A is intricately involved in abscisic acid (ABA) signalling and that knockout or knockdown of key genes in m1A RNA methylation causes ABA hypersensitivity. Collectively, our findings establish m1A as a dynamic epitranscriptomic mark, highlighting its critical role in regulating the ABA signalling pathway. This study profiles the global landscape of N1-methyladenosine (m1A) mRNA methylation and uncovers the physiological and molecular functions of m1A through the identification and functional characterization of novel m1A writers and readers in Arabidopsis.","PeriodicalId":18904,"journal":{"name":"Nature Plants","volume":"12 7","pages":"1403-1416"},"PeriodicalIF":15.0,"publicationDate":"2026-07-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148459754","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Root developmental zonation is independent of cell wall pH","authors":"Pavel Krupař, Wiebke Haeger, Lorena Huffer, Daša Wernerová, Radek Vítek, Matouš Glanc, Thorsten Hamann, Matyáš Fendrych","doi":"10.1038/s41477-026-02339-z","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41477-026-02339-z","url":null,"abstract":"Plant development and morphogenesis rely on tight spatiotemporal regulation of cell growth, which in turn depends on the acidity of the cell wall1,2. According to the widely accepted acid growth theory, auxin promotes shoot cell expansion by acidifying the apoplast via activation of AHA proton pumps3. Nonetheless, how exactly auxin signalling and cell wall acidity feed into the developmental zonation of cell expansion in the roots remains unresolved. Here we show that while on the organ level apoplast acidification promotes root growth, the cellular surface pH and strain rate profiles are largely independent of each other. We introduce WALLΦ, a genetically encoded fluorescent sensor for non-invasive cell wall pH measurements. Using WALLΦ, we examined the cell wall pH gradients in Arabidopsis on the organ and cellular scale and found, contrary to the acid growth theory, a lack of a clear correlation of local growth rate with cell wall acidity. Globally, cell wall pH gates growth and allows for quick adaptations of growth rate and directionality. The authors developed a cell wall-anchored pH sensor and found that the cell elongation profile does not correlate with cell wall acidification in Arabidopsis roots. At the same time, cell wall pH changes allow for quick adaptations of growth rate and direction.","PeriodicalId":18904,"journal":{"name":"Nature Plants","volume":"12 7","pages":"1334-1343"},"PeriodicalIF":15.0,"publicationDate":"2026-07-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.nature.comhttps://www.nature.com/articles/s41477-026-02339-z.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148459755","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nature PlantsPub Date : 2026-07-16DOI: 10.1038/s41477-026-02353-1
Songxiao Zhong, Xiuren Zhang
{"title":"Clearance of splicing byproducts promotes plant defence","authors":"Songxiao Zhong, Xiuren Zhang","doi":"10.1038/s41477-026-02353-1","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41477-026-02353-1","url":null,"abstract":"Pre-mRNA splicing generates seemingly useless byproducts called lariat RNAs. In a recent issue of Science, Tang et al. show that lariat RNAs, if not cleared, act as precursors of 21 and 22-nucleotide small interfering RNAs that target defence-committed genes and dampen immunity during viral infection.","PeriodicalId":18904,"journal":{"name":"Nature Plants","volume":"12 7","pages":"1308-1309"},"PeriodicalIF":15.0,"publicationDate":"2026-07-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148459576","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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