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2025-07-09Scientists Propose Rhizosphere Engineering as a Scalable Solution to Climate-Induced Agricultural ChallengesThis paper explores how rhizosphere engineering, both plant-based and microbe-based, can be leveraged to enhance crop productivity, manage pests and diseases, and remediate contaminated environments under shifting climate conditions. It highlights the importance and urgency of moving beyond conventional input-intensive farming toward biologicall... Soil health and climate resilience are at the heart of global agricultural sustainability efforts. A collaborative team from Nitrogen Biogeochemistry Lab, led by Prof. LU Xiankai at South China Botanical Garden, published a cutting-edge review proposing rhizosphere engineering as a transformative solution to the multifaceted challenges facing fo...Read More -
2025-07-09Global distribution and influencing factors of plant-available phosphorus in (semi-)natural soilsDetermining plant-available phosphorus (P) concentration in soil is a prerequisite for identifying sites where P availability potentially limits plant growth and terrestrial carbon sequestration. However, global patterns and drivers of plant-available P in natural soils remain poorly understood. We constructed a global database of plant-availabl... Phosphorus (P) is frequently a limiting nutrient for plant production in terrestrial ecosystems. The soil is the primary source of P for plant growth, and plant-available soil P is the fraction of total soil P that is readily available to plants, especially plants without specialized carboxylate-releasing roots. Therefore, soil P availability af...Read More -
2025-07-09Uncovers Molecular Mechanism of Acetylation in Regulating Plant PhototropismPhototropism is essential for optimizing plant growth and development, primarily mediated by the photoreceptor phototropin 1 (phot1). However, the molecular components linking light perception to phot1 activation remain poorly understood. Here, we identify a novel regulatory mechanism wherein HDA9-dependent deacetylation precisely modulates phot... Plant phototropism represents an essential adaptive mechanism that optimizes photosynthetic efficiency and developmental processes through directional growth responses to light. As the primary photoreceptor, phototropin 1 (phot1) mediates both blue light perception and subsequent phototropic responses in plants. While the molecular components ...Read More -
2025-07-01Uncover the molecular mechanism underlying heterostyly in Rubiaceae: Auxin gene identified as a key “switch”Researchers employed multi-omics approaches to dissect the genetic architecture of the S-locus governing heterostyly in Mussaenda (Rubiaceae). The study revealed that S-locus comprises three tightly linked genes exhibiting a hemizygous structure, formed through stepwise gene duplication. The auxin-responsive gene MuIAA was identified as a candid... Scientists have discovered that the diversity of flowers in flowering plants may largely stem from their interactions with pollinators. To attract these pollinators, flowering plants have evolved a wide array of floral structures and morphologies during evolution. Interestingly, even distantly related plants can develop similar floral traits in ...Read More -
2025-07-01Completed high-quality reference genomes for three medicinal Glycyrrhiza species, facilitating the genetic breeding of licoriceWe obtained high-quality genomic sequence data of these three licorices. By genome assembly-assisted comparison, collinear relationships and structural variations (SVs) among the three Glycyrrhiza species were identified. As a consequence, the appearance of unique genes and differential expression of commonly existed genes explains why all three... Licorice, known as the "Elderly master" in Chinese medicine, is a brilliant gem in the treasure trove of traditional Chinese medicine. As early as in the "Shennong Ben Cao Jing ", it was classified as an upper-grade herb and holds a crucial position in the clinical application of traditional Chinese medicine. Traditional Chinese medicine often s...Read More -
2025-06-09Tomato CONSTANS-Like1 promotes anthocyanin biosynthesis under short day and suboptimal low temperatureThe SLCOL1-SLAN1 module can cooperatively regulate anthocyanin accumulation under short-day and low-temperature conditions, thus promoting tomato resistance to cold autumn and winter. Plant growth and development are precisely controlled by light and temperature during their life span. Based on the requirement of plants for the length of daylight to flower, plants can be classified into long-day plants (e.g. Arabidopsis), short-day plants (e.g. rice), and day-neutral plants (e.g. tomato). However, the mechanism by which photo...Read More -
2025-06-09Official Publication of "Atlas of Compositae Plants in China"The "Atlas of Compositae Plants in China" systematically summarizes the classification information of Chinese Compositae plants, encompassing 296 genera and 2,533 species. Of these, 278 genera and 1,830 species are accompanied by color illustrations and textual descriptions. I. Overview"Atlas of Compositae Plants in China," a monumental work systematically summarizing the classification information of Chinese compositae plants, has recently been officially published by Henan Science and Technology Press. Edited by Researcher Chen Yousheng and Associate Researcher Wang Long from the South China Botanical Garden, ...Read More