The Crop JournalPub Date : 2024-01-26DOI: 10.1016/j.cj.2023.12.009
Shaoshuai Liu, Ke Wang, Shuaifeng Geng, Moammar Hossain, Xingguo Ye, Aili Li, Long Mao, Karl-Heinz Kogel
{"title":"Enemies at peace: Recent progress in Agrobacterium-mediated cereal transformation","authors":"Shaoshuai Liu, Ke Wang, Shuaifeng Geng, Moammar Hossain, Xingguo Ye, Aili Li, Long Mao, Karl-Heinz Kogel","doi":"10.1016/j.cj.2023.12.009","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cj.2023.12.009","url":null,"abstract":"<p><em>Agrobacterium tumefaciens</em> mediated plant transformation is a versatile tool for plant genetic engineering following its discovery nearly half a century ago. Numerous modifications were made in its application to increase efficiency, especially in the recalcitrant major cereals plants. Recent breakthroughs in transformation efficiency continue its role as a mainstream technique in CRISPR/Cas-based genome editing and gene stacking. These modifications led to higher transformation frequency and lower but more stable transgene copies with the capability to revolutionize modern agriculture. In this review, we provide a brief overview of the history of <em>Agrobacterium</em>-mediated plant transformation and focus on the most recent progress to improve the system in both the <em>Agrobacterium</em> and the host recipient. A promising future for transformation in biotechnology and agriculture is predicted.</p>","PeriodicalId":501058,"journal":{"name":"The Crop Journal","volume":"9 11 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-01-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139586939","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The Crop JournalPub Date : 2024-01-26DOI: 10.1016/j.cj.2024.01.001
Yang Yang, Hongli Tian, Hongmei Yi, Zi Shi, Lu Wang, Yaming Fan, Fengge Wang, Jiuran Zhao
{"title":"LociScan, a tool for screening genetic marker combinations for plant variety discrimination","authors":"Yang Yang, Hongli Tian, Hongmei Yi, Zi Shi, Lu Wang, Yaming Fan, Fengge Wang, Jiuran Zhao","doi":"10.1016/j.cj.2024.01.001","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cj.2024.01.001","url":null,"abstract":"<p>To reduce the cost and increase the efficiency of plant genetic marker fingerprinting for variety discrimination, it is desirable to identify the optimal marker combinations. We describe a marker combination screening model based on the genetic algorithm (GA) and implemented in a software tool, LociScan. Ratio-based variety discrimination power provided the largest optimization space among multiple fitness functions. Among GA parameters, an increase in population size and generation number enlarged optimization depth but also calculation workload. Exhaustive algorithm afforded the same optimization depth as GA but vastly increased calculation time. In comparison with two other software tools, LociScan accommodated missing data, reduced calculation time, and offered more fitness functions. In large datasets, the sample size of training data exerted the strongest influence on calculation time, whereas the marker size of training data showed no effect, and target marker number had limited effect on analysis speed.</p>","PeriodicalId":501058,"journal":{"name":"The Crop Journal","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-01-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139586823","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The Crop JournalPub Date : 2024-01-26DOI: 10.1016/j.cj.2023.12.008
Linhua Wu, Min Hu, Shuwei Lyu, Wenfeng Chen, Hang Yu, Qing Liu, Wei He, Chen Li, Zuofeng Zhu
{"title":"A 48-bp deletion upstream of LIGULELESS 1 alters rice panicle architecture","authors":"Linhua Wu, Min Hu, Shuwei Lyu, Wenfeng Chen, Hang Yu, Qing Liu, Wei He, Chen Li, Zuofeng Zhu","doi":"10.1016/j.cj.2023.12.008","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cj.2023.12.008","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Panicle architecture is an agronomic determinant of crop yield and a target for cereal crop improvement. To investigate its molecular mechanisms in rice, we performed map-based cloning and characterization of <em>OPEN PANICLE 1</em> (<em>OP1</em>), a gain-of-function allele of <em>LIGULELESS 1</em> (<em>LG1</em>), controlling the spread-panicle phenotype. This allele results from a 48-bp deletion in the <em>LG1</em> upstream region and promotes pulvinus development at the base of the primary branch. Increased <em>OP1</em> expression and altered panicle phenotype in pC1 chimeric transgenic plants and upstream-region knockout mutants indicated that the deletion regulates spread-panicle architecture in the mutant <em>spread panicle 1</em> (<em>sp1</em>). Knockout <em>BRASSINOSTEROID UPREGULATED1</em> (<em>BU1</em>) gene in the background of <em>OP1</em> complementary plants showed compact panicles, suggesting <em>OP1</em> may regulate inflorescence architecture via the brassinosteroid signaling pathway. We propose that manipulating the upstream regulatory region of <em>OP1</em> or changing BR signal pathway could be an efficient way to improve rice inflorescence architecture.</p>","PeriodicalId":501058,"journal":{"name":"The Crop Journal","volume":"87 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-01-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139586821","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"A polygalacturonase gene OsPG1 modulates water homeostasis in rice","authors":"Qinwen Zou, Ranran Tu, Jiajun Wu, Tingting Huang, Zhihao Sun, Zheyan Ruan, Hongyu Cao, Shihui Yang, Xihong Shen, Guanghua He, Hong Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.cj.2023.12.007","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cj.2023.12.007","url":null,"abstract":"<p>A dynamic plant architecture is the basis of plant adaptation to changing environments. Although many genes regulating leaf rolling have been identified, genes directly associated with water homeostasis are largely unknown. Here, we isolated a rice mutant, <em>dynamic leaf rolling 1</em> (<em>dlr1</em>), characterized by ‘leaf unfolding in the morning-leaf rolling at noon-leaf unfolding in the evening’ during a sunny day. Water content was decreased in rolled leaves and water sprayed on leaves caused reopening, indicating that <em>in vivo</em> water deficiency induced the leaf rolling. Map-based cloning and expression tests demonstrated that an A1400G single base mutation in <em>Oryza sativa Polygalacturonase 1</em> (<em>OsPG1</em>)/<em>PHOTO-SENSITIVE LEAF ROLLING 1</em> (<em>PSL1</em>) was responsible for the dynamic leaf rolling phenotype in the <em>dlr1</em> mutant. <em>OsPG1</em> encodes a polygalacturonase, one of the main enzymes that degrade demethylesterified homogalacturonans in plant cell walls. <em>OsPG1</em> was constitutively expressed in various tissues and was enriched in stomata. Mutants of the <em>OsPG1</em> gene exhibited defects in stomatal closure and decreased stomatal density, leading to reduced transpiration and excessive water loss under specific conditions, but had normal root development. Further analysis revealed that mutation of <em>OsPG1</em> led to reduced pectinase activity in the leaves and increased demethylesterified homogalacturonans in guard cells. Our findings reveal a mechanism by which <em>OsPG1</em> modulates water homeostasis to control dynamic leaf rolling, providing insights for plants to adapt to environmental variation.</p>","PeriodicalId":501058,"journal":{"name":"The Crop Journal","volume":"28 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-01-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139561927","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Natural variation of an autophagy-family gene among rice subspecies affects grain size and weight","authors":"Shiying Huang, Peng Wang, Caijing Li, Qingwen Zhou, Tao Huang, Yicong Cai, Qin Cheng, Hui Wang, Qi Zhong, Zhihao Chen, Liping Chen, Haohua He, Jianmin Bian","doi":"10.1016/j.cj.2023.12.006","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cj.2023.12.006","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Elucidating the genetic basis of natural variation in grain size and weight among rice varieties can help breeders develop high-yielding varieties. We identified a novel gene, <em>GW3a</em> (<em>Grain Weight 3a</em>) (<em>LOC_Os03g27350</em>), that affects rice grain size and weight. <em>gw3a</em> mutants showed higher total starch content and dry matter accumulation than the wild type (WT), Nipponbare, suggesting that <em>GW3a</em> negatively regulates grain size and weight. Moreover, our study found that GW3a interacted with OsATG8 by cleaving it, suggesting that <em>GW3a</em> may be involved in the assembly of autophagosomes and starch degradation in plants. The haplotype analysis of <em>GW3a</em> showed functional differences between <em>indica</em> and <em>japonica</em> rice. Taken together, we conclude that <em>GW3a</em> is expressed in the autophagosome pathway regulating starch metabolism in rice, affecting yield-related traits, such as grain size, grain weight and thousand grain weight (TGW). Our findings also shed new light on autophagy-mediated yield trait regulation, proposing a possible strategy for the genetic improvement of high-yield germplasm in rice.</p>","PeriodicalId":501058,"journal":{"name":"The Crop Journal","volume":"55 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-01-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139562165","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The Crop JournalPub Date : 2024-01-14DOI: 10.1016/j.cj.2023.12.003
Zohreh Emami Bistgani, Allen V. Barker, Masoud Hashemi
{"title":"Physiology of medicinal and aromatic plants under drought stress","authors":"Zohreh Emami Bistgani, Allen V. Barker, Masoud Hashemi","doi":"10.1016/j.cj.2023.12.003","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cj.2023.12.003","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Drought poses a significant challenge, restricting the productivity of medicinal and aromatic plants. The strain induced by drought can impede vital processes like respiration and photosynthesis, affecting various aspects of plants’ growth and metabolism. In response to this adversity, medicinal plants employ mechanisms such as morphological and structural adjustments, modulation of drought-resistant genes, and augmented synthesis of secondary metabolites and osmotic regulatory substances to alleviate the stress. Extreme water scarcity can lead to leaf wilting and may ultimately result in plant death. The cultivation and management of medicinal plants under stress conditions often differ from those of other crops. This is because the main goal with medicinal plants is not only to increase the yield of the above-ground parts but also to enhance the production of active ingredients such as essential oils. To elucidate these mechanisms of drought resistance in medicinal and aromatic plants, the current review provides a summary of recent literature encompassing studies on the morphology, physiology, and biochemistry of medicinal and aromatic plants under drought conditions.</p>","PeriodicalId":501058,"journal":{"name":"The Crop Journal","volume":"7 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-01-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139461348","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Identification of Fusarium wilt resistance gene SiRLK1 in Sesamum indicum L","authors":"Yinghui Duan, Wenwen Qu, Shuxian Chang, Ming Ju, Cuiying Wang, Cong Mu, Hengchun Cao, Guiting Li, Qiuzhen Tian, Qin Ma, Zhanyou Zhang, Haiyang Zhang, Hongmei Miao","doi":"10.1016/j.cj.2023.12.004","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cj.2023.12.004","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Sesame Fusarium wilt (SFW), caused by <em>Fusarium oxysporum</em> f. sp. <em>sesami</em> (<em>Fos</em>), is one of the most devastating diseases affecting sesame cultivation. Deciphering the genetic control of SFW resistance is pivotal for effective disease management in sesame. An inheritance study on a cross between the highly resistant variety Yuzhi 11 and the highly susceptible accession Sp1 using a <em>Fos</em> pathogenicity group 1 isolate indicated that resistance was conferred by a single dominant allele. The target locus was located in a 1.24 Mb interval on chromosome 3 using a combination of cross-population association mapping and bulked segregant analysis. Fine genetic mapping further narrowed the interval between 21,350 and 21,401 kb. The locus <em>Sindi_0812400</em> was identified as the SFW resistance gene and officially designated <em>SiRLK1</em>. This gene encodes a specific malectin/receptor-like protein kinase with three putative tandem kinase domains and is considered a kinase fusion protein. Sequence analysis revealed that a high proportion (49.44%) of variants within the locus was located within the kinase domain III, and several of which were evidently associated with the diversity in SFW response, indicating the critical role of kinase domain III in expression of disease resistance. These findings provide valuable information for further functional analysis of SFW resistance genes and marker-assisted resistance breeding in sesame.</p>","PeriodicalId":501058,"journal":{"name":"The Crop Journal","volume":"16 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-01-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139461217","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The Crop JournalPub Date : 2024-01-14DOI: 10.1016/j.cj.2023.12.005
Chen Zhao, Jingjing Ma, Chen Yan, Yu Jiang, Yaohua Zhang, Yudan Lu, Ye Zhang, Suxin Yang, Xianzhong Feng, Jun Yan
{"title":"Drought-triggered repression of miR166 promotes drought tolerance in soybean","authors":"Chen Zhao, Jingjing Ma, Chen Yan, Yu Jiang, Yaohua Zhang, Yudan Lu, Ye Zhang, Suxin Yang, Xianzhong Feng, Jun Yan","doi":"10.1016/j.cj.2023.12.005","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cj.2023.12.005","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Drought stress limits agricultural productivity worldwide. Identifying and characterizing genetic components of drought stress-tolerance networks may improve crop resistance to drought stress. We show that the regulatory module formed by miR166 and its target gene, <em>ATHB14-LIKE</em>, functions in the regulation of drought tolerance in soybean (<em>Glycine max</em>). Drought stress represses the accumulation of miR166, leading to upregulation of its target genes. Optimal knockdown of miR166 in the stable transgenic line GmSTTM166 conferred drought tolerance without affecting yield. Expression of ABA signaling pathway genes was regulated by the miR166-mediated regulatory pathway, and ATHB14-LIKE directly activates some of these genes. There is a feedback regulation between <em>ATHB14-LIKE</em> and <em>MIR166</em> genes, and ATHB14-LIKE inhibits <em>MIR166</em> expression. These findings reveal that drought-triggered regulation of the miR166-mediated regulatory pathway increases plants drought resistance, providing new insights into drought stress regulatory network in soybean.</p>","PeriodicalId":501058,"journal":{"name":"The Crop Journal","volume":"16 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-01-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139461389","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Decoding the inconsistency of six cropland maps in China","authors":"Yifeng Cui, Ronggao Liu, Zhichao Li, Chao Zhang, Xiao-Peng Song, Jilin Yang, Le Yu, Mengxi Chen, Jinwei Dong","doi":"10.1016/j.cj.2023.11.011","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cj.2023.11.011","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Accurate cropland information is critical for agricultural planning and production, especially in food-stressed countries like China. Although widely used medium-to-high-resolution satellite-based cropland maps have been developed from various remotely sensed data sources over the past few decades, considerable discrepancies exist among these products both in total area and in spatial distribution of croplands, impeding further applications of these datasets. The factors influencing their inconsistency are also unknown. In this study, we evaluated the consistency and accuracy of six cropland maps widely used in China in circa 2020, including three state-of-the-art 10-m products (i.e., Google Dynamic World, ESRI Land Cover, and ESA WorldCover) and three 30-m ones (i.e., GLC_FCS30, GlobeLand 30, and CLCD). We also investigated the effects of landscape fragmentation, climate, and agricultural management. Validation using a ground-truth sample revealed that the 10-m-resolution WorldCover provided the highest accuracy (92.3%). These maps collectively overestimated Chinese cropland area by up to 56%. Up to 37% of the land showed spatial inconsistency among the maps, concentrated mainly in mountainous regions and attributed to the varying accuracy of cropland maps, cropland fragmentation and management practices such as irrigation. Our work shed light on the promotion of future cropland mapping efforts, especially in highly inconsistent regions.</p>","PeriodicalId":501058,"journal":{"name":"The Crop Journal","volume":"23 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-01-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139422494","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The Crop JournalPub Date : 2024-01-09DOI: 10.1016/j.cj.2023.11.013
Yanzhu Su, Xiaoshuai Hao, Weiying Zeng, Zhenguang Lai, Yongpeng Pan, Can Wang, Pengfei Guo, Zhipeng Zhang, Jianbo He, Guangnan Xing, Wubin Wang, Jiaoping Zhang, Zudong Sun, Junyi Gai
{"title":"Genome-wide association with transcriptomics reveals a shade-tolerance gene network in soybean","authors":"Yanzhu Su, Xiaoshuai Hao, Weiying Zeng, Zhenguang Lai, Yongpeng Pan, Can Wang, Pengfei Guo, Zhipeng Zhang, Jianbo He, Guangnan Xing, Wubin Wang, Jiaoping Zhang, Zudong Sun, Junyi Gai","doi":"10.1016/j.cj.2023.11.013","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cj.2023.11.013","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Shade tolerance is essential for soybeans in inter/relay cropping systems. A genome-wide association study (GWAS) integrated with transcriptome sequencing was performed to identify genes and construct a genetic network governing the trait in a set of recombinant inbred lines derived from two soybean parents with contrasting shade tolerance. An improved GWAS procedure, restricted two-stage multi-locus genome-wide association study based on gene/allele sequence markers (GASM-RTM-GWAS), identified 140 genes and their alleles associated with shade-tolerance index (STI), 146 with relative pith cell length (RCL), and nine with both. Annotation of these genes by biological categories allowed the construction of a protein–protein interaction network by 187 genes, of which half were differentially expressed under shading and non-shading conditions as well as at different growth stages. From the identified genes, three ones jointly identified for both traits by both GWAS and transcriptome and two genes with maximum links were chosen as beginners for entrance into the network. Altogether, both STI and RCL gene systems worked for shade-tolerance with genes interacted each other, this confirmed that shade-tolerance is regulated by more than single group of interacted genes, involving multiple biological functions as a gene network.</p>","PeriodicalId":501058,"journal":{"name":"The Crop Journal","volume":"39 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-01-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139423776","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}