Annals of botany最新文献

{"title":"Zooming in to see the big picture: the value of integrative work to understand early stages of pollinator-mediated plant divergence. A commentary on 'Geographical variation in flower colour of a food-deceptive orchid reflects local pollinator preferences'.","authors":"Katherine Wenzell, Mikhaela Neequaye","doi":"10.1093/aob/mcaf135","DOIUrl":"10.1093/aob/mcaf135","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":8023,"journal":{"name":"Annals of botany","volume":" ","pages":"i-iii"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-09-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12455708/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144504738","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":"Geographical variation in flower colour of a food-deceptive orchid reflects local pollinator preferences.","authors":"Steven D Johnson, Timotheüs van der Niet, Ethan Newman, Nina Hobbhahn, Bruce Anderson","doi":"10.1093/aob/mcaf074","DOIUrl":"10.1093/aob/mcaf074","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and aims: </strong>Intraspecific variation in floral traits can reflect shifts among different pollinator niches. We investigated whether a geographical mosaic of pollinator niches can explain divergence of flower colour and morphology among populations of Disa porrecta, a food-deceptive orchid in South Africa.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We used field observations and pollen load analysis to establish pollinators of D. porrecta and measured spectral reflectance, morphology and scent emissions in populations. We used reciprocal translocation experiments and pairs of artificial inflorescences to establish pollinator foraging preferences. A phylogenetic analysis was used to assess relationships among populations of D. porrecta and related taxa.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>We documented two colour forms of D. porrecta that differ in pollinator assemblages. The orange-flowered form in the east of the distribution is pollinated solely by a wide-ranging nymphalid butterfly species. The pink-flowered form in the westernmost part of the distribution is pollinated primarily by a long-proboscid fly species. The orchid's floral spectral reflectance and morphology closely match those of most nectar plants used by these pollinators, implying a potential role for mimicry. In reciprocal translocations, butterflies showed strong preference for the orange-flowered form of the orchid at sites in the east, while both long-proboscid flies and butterflies showed a preference for the pink-flowered form at sites in the west. These preferences were also evident in experiments involving pairs of artificial inflorescences that varied only in colour. Phylogenetic analysis showed that the two colour forms of D. porrecta share an immediate common ancestor, but the direction of the colour shift could not be reliably reconstructed.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>This study identifies a role for a geographical mosaic of nectar plants and pollinators in the divergence of floral traits in D. porrecta. Differences in flower colour among populations of this orchid species are strongly correlated with pollinator foraging preferences.</p>","PeriodicalId":8023,"journal":{"name":"Annals of botany","volume":" ","pages":"513-527"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-09-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12455719/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143974785","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":"Increased nitrate uptake by plants in response to nitrogen addition and mowing in a temperate grassland.","authors":"Jinglei Tang, Junjie Yang, Yi Zhu, Lu Bai, Shidong Cui, Xingguo Han, Haiyan Ren","doi":"10.1093/aob/mcaf112","DOIUrl":"10.1093/aob/mcaf112","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and aims: </strong>Plants absorb different forms of nitrogen (N) from the soil, which influences biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. However, how N uptake responds to different N addition rates and traditional mowing practices remains largely unexplored.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A field experiment was carried out to examine the effects of six N addition rates (0, 2, 5, 10, 20 and 50 g N m-2 yr-1) and mowing on N uptake. Using a 15N labelling method, we quantified ammonium, nitrate and glycine absorption by the dominant rhizomatous grass (Leymus chinensis) and three common bunchgrass species (Stipa grandis, Agropyron cristatum and Achnatherum sibiricum) in a temperate grassland.</p><p><strong>Key results: </strong>Our results showed an overall N acquisition pattern across all species in the control: ammonium (46-51 %) > nitrate (27-41 %) > glycine (10-26 %). Nitrogen addition increased nitrate uptake while decreasing glycine uptake, with ammonium uptake enhanced only in the rhizomatous grass, L. chinensis. Mowing increased nitrate uptake by 5-12 %. However, the interactions between N addition and mowing had no significant effect on plant N uptake. Structural equation modelling revealed that both N addition and mowing reduced the NH4+/NO3- ratio, thereby promoting nitrate uptake.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>These findings highlight distinct N acquisition strategies between rhizomatous and bunchgrass species in response to N addition and mowing. The greater uptake of nitrate compared to ammonium aligns with the increasing trend of nitrate deposition. Future rises in nitrate deposition may favour the succession of common plant species, especially dominant ones, potentially enhancing ecosystem stability and mitigating the negative effects of N deposition.</p>","PeriodicalId":8023,"journal":{"name":"Annals of botany","volume":" ","pages":"543-552"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-09-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12455716/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144198079","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":"Wikidata for botanists: benefits of collaborating and sharing Linked Open Data.","authors":"Sabine von Mering, Siobhan Leachman, Joaquim Santos, Heidi M Meudt","doi":"10.1093/aob/mcaf062","DOIUrl":"10.1093/aob/mcaf062","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Wikidata is a multilingual linked open knowledge base to which anyone can contribute that contains multitudes of botany-related information. Wikidata reveals interactions between entities and connects botany-related information from multiple institutions and other sources, benefiting the botanical community in numerous ways. The aim of this article is to give an overview of Wikidata from a botany perspective and issue a call to action to the botanical community to collectively improve the quantity and quality of information related to botany, botanists and botanical collections, in Wikidata. Here, we use a broad definition of botany to include the study of many different taxa and specializations.</p><p><strong>Scope: </strong>Wikidata contains botany-related data and identifiers for botanists and botanical collectors, botanical taxa, natural history institutions and collections, botany-related publications, geographical locations and research expeditions, as well as genes, genetic variants, chemical compounds, diseases, and more. As an open, collaborative and community-curated knowledge base, Wikidata enables different communities to add and link data related to botany and empowers the querying and reuse of this data via digital tools such as the Wikidata Query Service, Bionomia, Scholia, TL-2 and Expeditia.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Collaboration is key in botany and Wikidata, and the sharing and enriching of botany-related Linked Open Data benefits us all. Several resources, including ethical and legal guidelines, are available for botanists to edit, use, reuse, roundtrip and teach Wikidata. We call on all botanists to be active participants in Wikidata, improving the quality, quantity and linking of botany-related data. Our individual and collective actions can help harness the power of Linked Open Data to answer important queries in the field, improve accessibility of herbaria, increase visibility of botanists and their scientific contributions, integrate Wikidata into the classroom, support the Madrid Declaration strategic actions, achieve our collective goals, and ultimately make botany-related information more FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) and equitable.</p>","PeriodicalId":8023,"journal":{"name":"Annals of botany","volume":" ","pages":"491-511"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-09-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12455711/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144245962","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":"Transcriptomic responses of Antarctic plants to in situ warming: uncovering molecular mechanisms behind physiological adjustments.","authors":"Kyungwon Min, Syahril Sulaiman, Jungeun Lee, León A Bravo, Patricia L Sáez, Hyoungseok Lee","doi":"10.1093/aob/mcaf108","DOIUrl":"10.1093/aob/mcaf108","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and aims: </strong>Previous studies using open-topped chambers to simulate warming in Antarctic field conditions have shown distinct physiological responses between the two Antarctic vascular plants Colobanthus quitensis and Deschampsia antarctica. Colobanthus quitensis exhibited significantly increased photosynthetic capacity and growth during in situ warming conditions, whereas D. antarctica showed no differences in these parameters. To understand the differences in ecological strategies of these plants in response to climate change, it is important to elucidate the molecular mechanisms underlying physiological responses.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Transcriptome profiling was performed on plants from open-topped chambers and a control open area on King George Island, after three growing seasons. Differential gene expression was analysed using RNA sequencing, followed by Gene Ontology and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway enrichment analyses to identify key biological processes affected by in situ warming.</p><p><strong>Key results: </strong>Colobanthus quitensis exhibited significant upregulation of photosynthesis-related genes, including aquaporins, carbonic anhydrases and Rubisco activase, enhancing CO2 diffusion and assimilation. Conversely, D. antarctica showed downregulation of photosynthetic pathways but upregulation of genes related to flowering, including flowering-promoting factor and phytochrome-regulatory proteins. Both species showed molecular signatures suggesting reduced freezing tolerance in warming conditions, potentially increasing their susceptibility to frost damage.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The results indicate distinct ecological strategies between the two plants in response to in situ warming. Colobanthus quitensis enhances its photosynthetic efficiency, whereas D. antarctica appears to accelerate its reproductive phase rather than focusing on growth. These findings contribute to our understanding of how Antarctic plants might respond to ongoing climate changes, with potential implications for their future resilience to extreme environmental conditions.</p>","PeriodicalId":8023,"journal":{"name":"Annals of botany","volume":" ","pages":"529-542"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-09-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12455715/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144257243","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":"The Geosiphon-Nostoc symbiosis: recent elaboration or remnant of an enduring association?","authors":"Matthew P Nelsen, H Thorsten Lumbsch, C Kevin Boyce","doi":"10.1093/aob/mcaf057","DOIUrl":"10.1093/aob/mcaf057","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and aims: </strong>Fungal associations with photosynthetic microbes have regularly been invoked as precursors to the evolution of land plants and their mycorrhizal associations. The fungus Geosiphon pyriformis (Glomeromycotina) deviates from its arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM)-forming relatives through the presence of an intracellular symbiosis with Nostoc cyanobacteria and is frequently viewed as the only extant representative of an ancient and formerly widespread association between fungi and cyanobacteria that occupied early terrestrial ecosystems. Here, we add to growing evidence suggesting the Geosiphon-Nostoc-like associations are not ancestral to AM associations and did not occupy landscapes prior to the evolution of land plants. In addition, we discuss the underlying drivers contributing to the origination and persistence of this argument and other ways in which Geosiphon has been misunderstood.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We inferred time-scaled phylogenies of Glomeromycotina and leveraged ancestral state reconstruction both to evaluate the plausibility of a Geosiphon-like ancestral state while highlighting the additional complexity required to maintain support for a Geosiphon-like ancestral state.</p><p><strong>Key results: </strong>Our analyses overwhelmingly recovered the Geosiphon-like state as being derived from AM associations.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Our work illustrates the diverse ways in which Geosiphon has been misunderstood and adds to a growing body of evidence suggesting that the Geosiphon-like ecology is derived from AM-forming ancestors and did not occupy terrestrial ecosystems prior to the evolution of land plants. We conclude by discussing outstanding questions pertaining to the ecology and evolution of Glomeromycotina fungi.</p>","PeriodicalId":8023,"journal":{"name":"Annals of botany","volume":" ","pages":"473-484"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-09-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12455723/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143741814","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":"Alterations in arabinogalactan proteins in banana peel during fruit development and ripening.","authors":"Shazma Gulzar, Zan Yi, Rahat Sharif, Jing Liu, Tong Ning, Xiaoquan Li, Zuxiang Su, Chunxiang Xu","doi":"10.1093/aob/mcaf123","DOIUrl":"10.1093/aob/mcaf123","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and aims: </strong>Arabinogalactan proteins (AGPs) are vital for supporting the structural aspects of plant growth and development. However, knowledge regarding their role in the growth and ripening of banana fruit remains elusive.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>In the present study, changes in the spatiotemporal distribution, transcriptional level of different AGPs and their content during the development and ripening of banana fruit were investigated.</p><p><strong>Key results: </strong>Immunofluorescence labelling results indicated that banana AGP components were predominantly present in the epidermis, xylem and phloem. RNA-sequencing analysis revealed that during fruit development, the expression of 88 out of 259 MaAGP genes decreased, while 29 displayed opposite expression. Nevertheless, some genes demonstrated peak expression at stage II, aligning closely with the levels of AGP epitopes identified by JIM4, JIM8, LM2 and JIM13 antibodies. Ethylene treatment raised the expression of 31 members and inhibited 57 of them. This is supported by a decreasing trend in the AGP epitope level of LM2, MAC204 and MaFLA27 antibodies, whereas it was inverse for JIM8 antibody. Consequently, AGP content showed a decline in expression during the development and ripening processes. The profusion of plant hormone and growth-responsive cis-acting regulatory elements found in the 2-kb upstream region of MaAGPs further indicates the involvement of AGPs in developmental and ripening activities. MaSAUR39, MaSYD1/2, MaF-box1/2/3, MaBP1, MaRIMA1, MaLLR1, MaATMRP1, MaBBR1/2 and MaPPS1 were among the proteins that interacted the most and are essential for plant growth and development.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The findings of this study offer new understanding into the role of AGPs in banana fruit growth and ripening.</p>","PeriodicalId":8023,"journal":{"name":"Annals of botany","volume":" ","pages":"623-636"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-09-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12455710/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144526209","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":"Fungus-infected Meiogyne flowers offer a brood site for beetle pollinators in a tripartite nursery pollination system.","authors":"Ming-Fai Liu, Junhao Chen, Bine Xue, Rui-Jiang Wang, Richard M K Saunders","doi":"10.1093/aob/mcaf116","DOIUrl":"10.1093/aob/mcaf116","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and aims: </strong>Fungi are widely known for their pathological impact on flowers, but some play a beneficial role in pollination. The inner petal corrugation of Meiogyne hainanensis (Annonaceae) in Hainan, China was reported to be prone to fungal infection and hypothesized to be a potential brood site for insects. We therefore investigated whether a nursery pollination system occurs in this species and whether the fungi play a mutualistic role.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Floral phenology and pollinator activity were observed. Effective pollinators were identified by assessing the presence of pollen grains on floral visitors retrieved from pistillate-phase flowers. Floral odour was characterized using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. To assess the fungal composition of post-anthetic flowers and the gut contents of pollinators, ITS2 metabarcoding was performed.</p><p><strong>Key results: </strong>The flowers emit a fruity scent composed mostly of sesquiterpenes, aliphatic esters, aliphatic ketones and aliphatic alcohols, attracting the effective beetle pollinators Paraphloeostiba sp. (Staphylinidae) and Mimemodes sp. (Monotomidae). The pollinators mate and oviposit onto the adaxial corrugation of the inner petals. After the end of anthesis, filamentous fungi grow extensively on these corrugated tissues. The flower has an unusually long post-anthetic phase that lasts ≤2 months, during which the fungus-infected petals remain arboreal. Upon hatching, the Paraphloeostiba and Mimemodes larvae consume the fungal mycelia. ITS2 metabarcoding analysis reveals that the larval diet and the fungal community of the inner petal corrugation are composed primarily of ascomycete fungi, such as Fusarium, Penicillium and Cladosporium species, suggesting that the fungi provide a food reward for the pollinator's brood.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Meiogyne hainanensis exhibits brood-site pollination, in which filamentous fungi are an essential mutualistic partner. The fungal partners appear to consist of opportunistic fungi that are also fruit pathogens. These findings provide insights into the possible origin of the tripartite nursery pollination system.</p>","PeriodicalId":8023,"journal":{"name":"Annals of botany","volume":" ","pages":"567-582"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-09-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12455712/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144214739","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":"Resolving relationships in the radiation of Australia's largest pea clade (Fabaceae tribe Mirbelieae) with target-capture sequencing.","authors":"James A R Clugston, Russell L Barrett, Daniel J Murphy, Matthew A M Renner, Peter H Weston, Lyn G Cook, Peter C Jobson, Brendan J Lepschi, Michael D Crisp","doi":"10.1093/aob/mcaf128","DOIUrl":"10.1093/aob/mcaf128","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and aims: </strong>Tribe Mirbelieae (Fabaceae) represents one of the great species radiations in Australian flora and the largest in the pea-flowered legumes. Traditional amplicon sequencing has failed to resolve relationships within this species-rich and morphologically diverse tribe.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Target-capture sequencing was used to reconstruct relationships within the core Mirbelioid legumes, which represent a previously hypothesized rapid radiation that dates to the Oligocene and early Miocene epochs.</p><p><strong>Key results: </strong>We recovered strongly supported deep nodes resolving relationships between all recognized genera and four novel clades based on 289 low-copy nuclear markers derived from the Angiosperms353 universal probe set. The taxonomically challenging genus Pultenaea was demonstrated to be polyphyletic. Minor changes are required in Aotus, Callistachys, Mirbelia, Oxylobium, Phyllota and Urodon.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Phylogenomic data have robustly resolved relationships in a large legume clade where relationships were long feared irresolvable. This resolution enables the recognition of monophyletic genera within the tribe, with only minimal taxonomic rearrangements. Critically, a new circumscription of Pultenaea supported by both phylogenomic and morphological data has now been achieved.</p>","PeriodicalId":8023,"journal":{"name":"Annals of botany","volume":" ","pages":"637-649"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-09-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12455713/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144504736","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":"Gametocidal Genes: Biological Mechanisms Owing to Hybrid Dysgenesis in Crop Breeding, Challenges and Innovation.","authors":"Nicola Walter, Ian King, Julie King, Surbhi Grewal","doi":"10.1093/aob/mcaf226","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/aob/mcaf226","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Climate change and population growth are major threats to global food security. Many cultivated crops remain vulnerable due to reduced genetic variation. Wild relatives and diverse accessions of crop species are being used to reintroduce diversity into their genomes to help contend with these issues. However, in some species, notably Triticum aestivum, Oryza spp., Solanum lycopersicum, Zea mays and Nicotiana spp., Arabidopsis thaliana, and their wild relatives, gamete-killing genes may be responsible for the occurrence of hybrid dysgenesis through the targeting of reproductive cells that do not contain the gene.</p><p><strong>Scope: </strong>This article explores gametocidal genes, \"pollen killers\" or \"gamete killers\", and toxin-antidote systems that result in sterility, alongside potential biological mechanisms. Gametocidal genes from wheat wild relatives significantly impact breeding programmes: wild relatives may contain useful germplasm but also gametocidal genes resulting in disastrous effects including yield reductions. Due to their preferential transmission, gametocidal genes are extremely difficult to remove, therefore gene characterisation is necessary. Hybrid sterility loci in Oryza spp. have been addressed, highlighting those that function similarly to gametocidal genes.We collate recent evidence to appraise the merit of biological mechanism hypotheses and suggest how recent innovations may improve characterisation. Additionally, the challenges that they contribute to breeding programmes and subsequent successes are highlighted. In light of genetic innovation, we suggest contexts where a revival of using gametocidal genes may be beneficial, alongside novel techniques for research.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Past research has identified unique characteristics of gametocidal genes, leading to theories such as the Dual-Mechanism and Restriction-Modification models to explain the mechanisms. However, recent research suggests that complex genetic factors such as transposable elements and epigenetics may account for the phenomenon. Future work towards mapping these genes is hopeful: innovations in sequencing, bioinformatics and genomic data have improved the ability to precisely identify the elusive gametocidal genes.</p>","PeriodicalId":8023,"journal":{"name":"Annals of botany","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-09-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145111810","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}