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Natural variation of the F-box protein ZmFBL41 in maize confers resistance to Rhizoctonia solani, the causal fungus for banded leaf and sheath blight in maize, through decreased interaction of ZmFBL41 with the cinnamyl alcohol dehydrogenase ZmCAD.

Maize oil is an important food and energy source. Now, Jianbing Yan and colleagues report a genome-wide association study in maize for maize kernel oil composition. They analyzed 368 maize lines with 1.06 million SNPs genome-wide and found 74 loci associated with maize kernel oil concentration and fatty acid composition.

A high-density genomic variation map from 744 genomes encompassing maize and all wild taxa of the genus Zea reveals evidence of adaptive variation and provides a genus-wide resource of genetic diversity in Zea.

Thiamine pyrophosphate (TPP) is the biologically active form of vitamin B1 and servers as an essential metabolic cofactor regulating energy production, redox homeostasis, and carbon assimilation. Here, the authors show that optimizing TPP metabolism can enhance yield and quality in maize, rice and rapeseed.

Genomic, transcriptomic and metabolomic analyses from a population of 295 diverse sweet-corn inbred lines provide insights into kernel quality formation mechanisms and the divergence of sweet corn and field corn.

Most near-infrared room-temperature phosphorescent (NIR-RTP) materials are highly conjugated, requiring complex synthesis and resulting in poor processability. Here, the authors demonstrate the synthesis of a short-conjugated polymer via multicomponent spiropolymerization and blended it with polystyrene, achieving NIR-RTP polymers with good processability and high Stokes shift.

This study presents 25 new maize genome assemblies and integrates them with 31 publicly available maize genomes to conduct a pangenome analysis that provides genetic insights into drought resistance.

The authors integrate spatial (Stereo-seq) and single-cell transcriptomes of the developing maize ear to produce an atlas of maize ear cells and their developmental trajectories. They also identify a pair of transcription factors involved in inflorescence development.

China’s rapid e-commerce growth has driven a 12-fold surge in express delivery, yet cross-regional emissions and health impacts remain poorly quantified. Road transport emitted 23.9-Mt CO₂-equivalent and caused approximately 5,100 premature deaths in 2021, revealing stark transit-region health inequities and guiding sustainable logistics pathways.

An integrative network map of maize (Zea mays L.) that contains genomic, transcriptomic, translatomic and proteomic networks illustrates the landscape of molecular interactions of different functional elements and potential pathway modules in maize.

Unilateral cross incompatibility (UCI) is a type of prezygotic reproductive isolation, which is associated with multiple loci in maize. Here, the authors use genetic analysis to separate the Ga1 locus into two functional components and identify seven linked genes encoding three types of proteins.

Torbert Rocheford and colleagues show that variation at crtRB1 is associated with increased beta-carotene levels in maize. The most favorable crtRB1 allele is currently being introgressed into tropical germplasm, in order to address dietary vitamin A deficiency in the developing world.

Understanding greenhouse gas (GHG) emission patterns in crop production, particularly their spatial and temporal distributions, is key to designing better policies. This study combines secondary data and household survey data to examine the GHG emissions intensity of croplands in China and how it has fluctuated in the past few decades and to identify the factors driving emissions intensity inequality.

Southern corn rust (SCR) caused by Puccinia polysora is a major maize disease that can result in major yield loss. Here, the authors report the expression of a CC-NB-LRR type of R gene RppK results in SCR resistance in susceptible maize lines and it can recognize the effector AvrRppK produced by P. polysora.

The root-related changes in maize domestication, improvement and modern breeding were systematically investigated, and candidate genes related to maize root system architecture were identified for future genetic improvement.

Transposon-associated inverted repeats play a role in drought resistance and yield-related traits in maize.

Meiotic crossover (CO) landscape differs inter- and intra-species, as well as between sexes. Here, the authors show that male meiosis produces more COs than female in maize and detect CO maturation inefficiency in some genetic backgrounds, which may help to improve breeding efficiency.

A high-quality reference genome of the maize SK inbred line and analyses between the tropical SK line and two other maize genomes, B73 and Mo17, provide insights into structural variation and crop improvement.

Spatial organization of regulatory elements and its impact on gene expression in plants remain unclear. Here, the authors construct maize chromatin interaction maps using chromatin interaction analysis by paired-end tag sequencing (ChIA-PET) and show their associations with gene expression and agronomic traits.

Mingliang Xu and colleagues show that a wall-associated kinase, ZmWAK, confers resistance to maize head smut, a systemic fungal disease in maize.

Plants produce a variety of metabolites that have a critical role in growth and development. Here, the authors carry out a genome-wide association analysis of metabolites and metabolite features in maize and identify candidate genes involved in secondary metabolism, and a potential biomarker for the genetic improvement of the crop.

Drought is a major cause of yield loss in maize and understanding the genetic determinants of natural variation in drought tolerance may aid breeding programs produce more tolerant varieties. Here, Mao et al.identify a MITE transposon insertion in a NAC transcription factor, which is associated with natural variation in drought tolerance.

Determining the link between gene polymorphisms and phenotypic traits is the subject of intense research in agricultural plant science. In this study, Fu et al. conduct RNA sequencing in maize kernels to determine gene polymorphisms, which may aid future research aiming to improve the nutritional value of maize.

Feng Qin and colleagues perform a genome-wide association study for drought tolerance in maize seedlings and find 42 candidate genes. They characterize a promoter insertion in the ZmVPP1 gene containing MYB-binding sites, which enables the drought-inducible expression of ZmVPP1, leading to drought tolerance, a phenotype confirmed through transgenic experiments.

The crossovers and gene conversions that occur during meiotic recombination contribute to genome diversity in eukaryotes. Here Li et al. describe a method of isolating individual microspores for whole-genome sequencing, providing new insights into the generation of genome diversity through sexual reproduction.

Defect states in perovskites dictate the charge carriers behaviour, thus the ultimate optical and electrical properties. Here, the authors in-situ investigate trapped carrier dynamics in MAPbI₃ thin films with ultra-fast temporal and high energetic resolution by means of ultrafast photocurrent spectroscopy.

Maize was domesticated from wild lowland progenitors that co-existed with upland subspecies in Southwestern Mexico. Here Yang et al. use a meta-assembly approach to assemble an upland mexicana genome and find evidence of introgression suggesting it contributed to modern maize adaptation

Plant breeders can produce haploid maize lines using haploid inducer lines as pollen donors. Here, by sequencing the genomes of single pollen nuclei, Li et al. show that haploid inducer spermatids are frequently aneuploid and suggest chromosome fragmentation as a possible cause of haploid induction.

SHATTERING 4 is a key rice domestication gene. A non-synonymous mutation of this gene was found to be selected during Asian rice domestication as it confers non-shattering. Now, a nonsense mutation of SHATTERING 4 is shown to simultaneously result in non-shattering and small grain size during the independent domestication of African rice.

The malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum escapes immune detection by expressing one of 60 antigenically distinct var genes at any one time during the course of infection: here it is shown that the P. falciparum protein PfSETvs has a key role in var gene silencing through the trimethylation of histone H3K36.

Breeding environmental adaptive crop cultivars under the climate changing scenario is anything but easy. Here, the authors review the concepts of plasticity and canalization and their integration with contemporary studies of genotype-environmental interactions with the objective to facilitate crop breeding.

This protocol describes a method for haplotype phasing plant genomes, using gamete cells to enable chromosome-level phasing and crossover detection without the need for Hi-C data or sequencing of large plant populations.