Brief Communications

The authors provide evidence that symbiotic fungi forming widespread arbuscular mycorrhiza symbioses use cross-kingdom RNA interference to silence plant genes and promote their colonization of host roots.

The authors developed a CRISPR-based proximity labelling system to profile DNA-binding proteins in plants, especially the transcription factors of target genes, as exemplified by studies on the regulators of PIF4 in Arabidopsis, cabbage and rice.

This study reports the mechanism of phytotoxicity by the explosive 2,4-dinitroanisole (DNAN) that is being phased in to replace TNT in munitions. Only low levels of DNAN are detoxified by plants, causing chronic toxicity and potential exposure to herbivores.

Arctic warming has led to widespread greening across the tundra. Utilizing remote-sensing and field data, this study identifies a positive fire–greening feedback loop operating across regional scales and highlights the emerging issue of wildfires in one of Earth’s largest carbon sinks.

A study developed a universal seedless watermelon inducer line using CRISPR/Cas9 to knock out the HAP2 gene, simplifying the breeding process and addressing food safety concerns. This method may also apply to other crops such as cherries or grapes.

To enhance cross-species single-cell analysis, the authors find gene pairs with similar expression patterns across 13 species. These coexpression proxies serve as common features in datasets, improving integrative and comparative cell-type analysis.

This study reports the structure of a photosystem I assembly intermediate isolated from greening oat seedlings. It defines PsaF as a regulatory checkpoint promoting the association of LHCI that couples biogenesis to function.

This study shows that optimizing soybean nodulation, rather than supernodulation, through editing improves N and C assimilation by balancing source–sink relationships. As a result, soybean yield and protein content are simultaneously increased in field conditions.

NARROW LEAF1 (NAL1) exerts a multifaceted influence on rice leaf morphology and yield. Recent crystal study proposed that histidine 233 (H233) is part of the catalytic triad. Here we report that H234 instead of H233 is a component of the catalytic triad alongside D291 and S385.

An efficient method of cyto-swapping by haploid induction using a CENH3 mutation is reported in maize, to convert commercial germplasm to cytoplasmic male sterility for hybrid seed production.

Huang et al. develop a potent genome editing toolkit to generate transgene-free genome-edited plants in the T0 generation by co-editing of ALS gene (without obvious fitness costs) and gene(s) of interest via Agrobacterium-mediated transient expression.

This study introduces a new multiplexed fluorescence in situ hybridization method, PHYTOMap, that enables single-cell and spatial analysis of gene expression in whole-mount plant tissue in a transgene-free manner and at low cost.

Strigolactone (SL) regulates plant development. Structural analysis shows that when SL binds its receptor ShHTL5, conformational changes occur including the creation of internal tunnels that posit an explanation for how SL by-products exit the receptor after signalling.

In plants, mechanically triggered signalling cascades involve intracellular calcium waves. The kinetics of waves induced by the application and release of force to a cell are distinct, suggesting that plants distinguish touch from letting go.

Callixylon wood from the Late Devonian (approximately 360 Myr ago) is found to contain tyloses, swellings of parenchyma cells into adjacent water-conducting cells that develop in response to embolism and pathogen infection.

The integration of single-nucleus and spatial transcriptomics is used to profile dynamic changes during soybean nodule maturation. The approach identifies a rare cell type that specifically expresses numerous genes required for symbiotic nitrogen fixation.

This study identifies two genes that are important for protecting wheat against blast fungus, a pathogen that also infects related grasses. This work helps identify potential strategies for breeding wheat with improved resistance to this damaging fungus.

On the basis of 38,994 records of giant trees belonging to 237 species across Japan, this study shows that macroecological processes such as climate may drive spiritual ecosystem services obtained from giant trees.

The lack of haploid male fertility is a bottleneck to improve the efficiency in doubled haploid technology for accelerating crop breeding. This study shows that mutations in the parallel spindle genes are sufficient to restore haploid male fertility in Arabidopsis.

Endogenous formation of nitroxyl has been discovered by real-time detection in plant cells. Evidence shows that nitroxyl has a specific accumulation pattern different from nitric oxide in response to senescence- and hypoxia-induced redox shifts.