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The leucine-rich repeat (LRR) protein family is involved in a variety of fundamental metabolic and signaling processes in plants, including growth and defense responses. LRR proteins can be divided into two categories: those containing LRR domains along with other structural elements, which are further subdivided into five groups, LRR receptor-like kinases, LRR receptor-like proteins, nucleotide-binding site LRR proteins, LRR-extensin proteins, and polygalacturonase-inhibiting proteins, and those containing only LRR domains. Functionally, various LRR proteins are primarily involved in plant development and responses to environmental stress. Notably, the LRR protein family plays a central role in signal transduction pathways related to stress adaptation. In this review, we classify and analyze the functions of LRR proteins in plants. While extensive research has been conducted on the roles of LRR proteins in disease resistance signaling, these proteins also play important roles in abiotic stress responses. This review highlights recent advances in understanding how LRR proteins mediate responses to biotic and abiotic stresses. Building upon these insights, further exploration of the roles of LRR proteins in abiotic stress resistance may aid efforts to develop rice varieties with enhanced stress and disease tolerance.

Abstract Objective To examine the relationship between retinal vascular geometry and silent brain infarction (SBI) in the Chinese population. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional study that retrospectively analyzed the fundus photographs, MRI and other clinical data of 227 SBIs and 227 controls who visited Shanghai Health And Medical Center for physical examination. The retinal vessel fractal dimension (FD), retinal artery fractal dimension (FDa), retinal vein fractal dimension (FDv), central retinal artery diameter in the region from 0.5 ~ 1.0 disc diameter (DD) from the disc margin (CRAEB), central retinal artery diameter in the region from 1.0 ~ 2.0 DD from the disc margin (CRAEC), central retinal vein diameter in the region from 0.5 ~ 1.0 DD from the disc margin (CRVEB), central retinal vein diameter in the region from 1.0 ~ 2.0 DD from the disc margin (CRVEC), retinal arteriovenous diameter ratio in the region from 0.5 ~ 1.0 DD from the disc margin (AVRB), and retinal arteriovenous diameter ratio in the region from 1.0 ~ 2.0 DD from the disc margin (AVRC) were accessed by the Singapore “I” Vessel Assessment (SIVA) software. Results FD, FDa, FDv, CRAEB, CRAEC, CRVEB, CRVEC and AVRB in SBI subjects were 1.25 (1.21–1.28), 1.11 (1.08–1.14), 1.09 (1.06–1.13), 168.78 ± 19.39, 163.55 ± 18.97, 235.77 (222.64-254.08), 224.39 ± 23.29, 0.72 ± 0.06, respectively, significantly lower than those of control subjects [1.30 (1.28–1.32), 1.15 (1.13–1.18), 1.14 (1.12–1.16), 196.81 ± 27.94, 183.81 ± 25.46, 273.03 (247.59–296.30), 249.59 ± 32.03, and 0.73 ± 0.08]. Logistic regression results showed that higher FD (OR, 0.04), FDa (OR, 0.07), FDv (OR, 0.06), CRAEB (OR, 0.02), CRAEC (OR, 0.04), CRVEB (OR, 0.03), CRVEC (OR, 0.06), and AVRB (OR, 0.55) were associated with a lower of SBI. There was no significant difference in AVRC between the two groups. Conclusion Our study shows the association between retinal vascular geometry and SBI, and the results may provide new biomarkers for the early detection of SBI.

Abstract Mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) is a therapeutic vulnerability in glycolysis-deficient cancers. Here we show that inhibiting OXPHOS similarly suppresses the proliferation and tumorigenicity of glycolytically competent colorectal cancer (CRC) cells in vitro and in patient-derived CRC xenografts. While the increased glycolytic activity rapidly replenished the ATP pool, it did not restore the reduced production of aspartate upon OXPHOS inhibition. This shortage in aspartate, in turn, caused nucleotide deficiencies, leading to S phase cell cycle arrest, replication fork stalling, and enrichment of the p53 pathway, manifestations of replication stress. The addition of purine nucleobases adenine and guanine along with the pyrimidine nucleoside uridine restored replication fork progression and cell proliferation, whereas the supplementation of exogenous aspartate recovered the nucleotide pool, demonstrating a causal role of the aspartate shortage in OXPHOS inhibition-induced nucleotide deficiencies and consequently replication stress and reductions in proliferation. Moreover, we demonstrate that glutamic-oxaloacetic transaminase 1 (GOT1) is critical for maintaining the minimum aspartate pool when OXPHOS is inhibited, as knockdown of GOT1 further reduced aspartate levels and rendered CRC cells more sensitive to OXPHOS inhibition both in vitro and in vivo. These results propose GOT1 targeting as a potential avenue to sensitize cancer cells to OXPHOS inhibitors, thus lowering the necessary doses to efficiently inhibit cancer growth while alleviating their adverse effects.

Abstract Intracranial aneurysm is a cerebrovascular disease associated with a high rupture risk, often resulting in death or severe disability. Recent advances in AI enable the prediction of intracranial aneurysm initiation, progression, and rupture through medical image analysis. Despite growing research interest, there is a shortage of publicly available datasets for training and validating AI models. This paper presents a comprehensive dataset comprising high-resolution CTA images of 99 patients with 105 MCA aneurysms and 44 normal healthy controls, along with their respective clinical data and 3D models of aneurysms and the parent arteries derived from the CTA images. Furthermore, recognizing the significance of blood hemodynamics on aneurysm development, this dataset also included the morphological and hemodynamic parameters obtained by computational fluid dynamics (CFD) for each patient and healthy control, which can be utilized by researchers without prior CFD experience. This dataset will facilitate hypothesis-driven or data-driven research on intracranial aneurysms, and has the potential to deepen our understanding of this disease.

In this study, a silver-modified layer was prepared on pure titanium through alkaline-heat treatment followed by hydrothermal sterilization in diluted silver nitrate (AgNO3) solutions at 121 °C for 20 min. The effects of the AgNO3 concentration on the surface silver content, silver-containing particle distribution, and silver chemical state were investigated; the antibacterial properties of the surface-modified titanium samples against Staphylococcus aureus and their compatibility with MC3T3-E1 osteoblast-like cells were preliminarily evaluated. The results showed that the 3D network nanostructure constructed by alkaline-heat treatment on the pure titanium served as a matrix for the reduction of Ag+ ions to silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) during the hydrothermal sterilization process without the addition of a reducing agent. These AgNPs evenly distributed without aggregation, and as the AgNO3 concentration decreased from 10−2 mol/L to 10−6 mol/L, the number of AgNPs gradually decreased, but their size slightly changed. Silver-loaded surfaces exhibited good antibacterial and anti-adhesion properties. However, when the AgNO3 concentration was greater than 10−4 mol/L, the number of AgNPs on the surface was excessive, resulting in significant cytotoxicity. When the AgNO3 concentration was between 10−5 and 10−6 mol/L, good antibacterial activity and good cell compatibility were achieved synchronously.

Abstract The abounding variations in wild rice provided potential reservoirs of beneficial genes for rice breeding. Maintaining stable and high yields under environmental stresses is a long-standing goal of rice breeding but is challenging due to internal trade-off mechanisms. Here, we report wild rice GL12 W improves grain length and salt tolerance in both indica and japonica genetic backgrounds. GL12 W alters cell length by regulating grain size related genes including GS2, and positively regulates the salt tolerance related genes, such as NAC5, NCED3, under salt stresses. We find that a G/T variation in GL12 promoter determined its binding to coactivator GIF1 and transcription factor WRKY53. GIF1 promotes GL12 W expression in young panicle and WRKY53 represses GL12 W expression under salt stresses. The G/T variation also contributes to the divergence of indica and japonica subspecies. Our results provide useful resources for modern rice breeding and shed insights for understanding yield and salt tolerance trade-off mechanism.

As critical transcription factors regulating various life activities, MADS-box transcription factors have been demonstrated to play key roles in controlling crop growth, development, and organogenesis. However, their relationship with crop yield has been seldom summarized. This article reviews the molecular mechanisms and genetic networks by which MADS-box transcription factors influence rice yield through regulating seed development, spikelet number, root nitrogen uptake, and environmental adaptability. Additionally, this review presents case studies on the application of favorable alleles within the MADS family genes in breeding practices. It also discusses how to integrate traditional breeding methods with emerging biotechnologies to overcome the adverse effects of linkage disequilibrium and pleiotropy in quantitative traits, aiming to achieve high yield, high quality, and stress-resistant breeding targets. Exploring and utilizing the molecular mechanisms of MADS-box transcription factors in rice yield regulation can significantly enhance crop productivity and ensure global food security.

Abstract Depression, a widespread and highly heritable mental health condition, profoundly affects millions of individuals worldwide. Neuroimaging studies have consistently revealed volumetric abnormalities in subcortical structures associated with depression. However, the genetic underpinnings shared between depression and subcortical volumes remain inadequately understood. Here, we investigate the extent of polygenic overlap using the bivariate causal mixture model (MiXeR), leveraging summary statistics from the largest genome-wide association studies for depression (N = 674,452) and 14 subcortical volumetric phenotypes (N = 33,224). Additionally, we identify shared genomic loci through conditional/conjunctional FDR analyses. MiXeR shows that subcortical volumetric traits share a substantial proportion of genetic variants with depression, with 44 distinct shared loci identified by subsequent conjunctional FDR analysis. These shared loci are predominantly located in intronic regions (58.7%) and non-coding RNA intronic regions (25.4%). The 269 protein-coding genes mapped by these shared loci exhibit specific developmental trajectories, with the expression level of 55 genes linked to both depression and subcortical volumes, and 30 genes linked to cognitive abilities and behavioral symptoms. These findings highlight a shared genetic architecture between depression and subcortical volumetric phenotypes, enriching our understanding of the neurobiological underpinnings of depression.

Abstract Background The identification of spotted leaf 50 (spl50), a novel lesion mimic mutant (LMM) in rice, provides critical insights into the mechanisms underlying programmed cell death (PCD) and innate immunity in plants. Results Based on ethyl methane sulfonate (EMS)-induced mutagenesis, the spl50 mutant mimics hypersensitive responses in the absence of pathogen by displaying spontaneous necrotic lesions after the tillering phase. SPL50, an ARM repeat protein essential for controlling reactive oxygen species (ROS) metabolism and boosting resistance to blast disease, was identified by map-based cloning techniques. This work also demonstrates the detrimental effects of spl50 on photosynthetic efficiency and chloroplast development. The crucial significance of SPL50 in cellular signaling and stress response is shown by its localization to the cytoplasm and constitutive expression in various plant tissues. In light of growing concerns regarding global food security, this study highlights the pivotal role of SPL50 in regulating programmed cell death (PCD) and enhancing the immune response in plants, contributing to strategies for improving crop disease resistance. Conclusions The novel identification of the SPL50 gene in rice, encoding an ARM repeat protein, reveals its pivotal role in regulating PCD and innate immune responses independently of pathogen attack.

Abstract Tandem repeats (TRs) are genomic regions that tandemly change in repeat number, which are often multiallelic. Their characteristics and contributions to gene expression and quantitative traits in rice are largely unknown. Here, we survey rice TR variations based on 231 genome assemblies and the rice pan-genome graph. We identify 227,391 multiallelic TR loci, including 54,416 TR variations that are absent from the Nipponbare reference genome. Only 1/3 TR variations show strong linkage with nearby bi-allelic variants (SNPs, Indels and PAVs). Using 193 panicle and 202 leaf transcriptomic data, we reveal 485 and 511 TRs act as QTLs independently of other bi-allelic variations to nearby gene expression, respectively. Using plant height and grain width as examples, we identify and validate TRs contributions to rice agronomic trait variations. These findings would enhance our understanding of the functions of multiallelic variants and facilitate rice molecular breeding.

ABSTRACTCAR-T cell therapy has emerged as a significant approach for the management of hematological malignancies. Over the past few years, the utilization of CAR-T cells in the investigation and treatment of solid tumors has gained momentum, thereby establishing itself as a prominent area of research. This descriptive study involved the retrieval of articles about CAR-T cell therapy for solid tumors from the Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC) database. Subsequently, bibliometric analysis and knowledge map analysis were conducted on these articles. The field under consideration is currently experiencing a period of swift advancement, as evidenced by the escalating number of publications in this domain each year. The United States holds an indisputable position as the foremost leader in this particular field, with the University of Pennsylvania emerging as the most active institution. The authors with the highest citation frequency and co-citation frequency are Carl H. June and Shannon L. Maude, respectively. The research hotspots in this field mainly focus on five aspects. Additionally, 10 emerging themes were identified. This study undertakes a comprehensive, systematic, and objective analysis and exploration of the field of CAR-T cell treatment for solid tumors, utilizing bibliometric methods. The findings of this study are expected to serve as a valuable reference and enlightenment for future research endeavors in this particular domain.

Abstract The abundant genetic variation harbored by wild rice (Oryza rufipogon) has provided a reservoir of useful genes for rice breeding. However, the genome of wild rice has not yet been comprehensively assessed. Here, we report the haplotype-resolved gapless genome assembly and annotation of wild rice Y476. In addition, we develop two sets of chromosome segment substitution lines (CSSLs) using Y476 as the donor parent and cultivated rice as the recurrent parents. By analyzing the gapless reference genome and CSSL population, we identify 254 QTLs associated with agronomic traits, biotic and abiotic stresses. We clone a receptor-like kinase gene associated with rice blast resistance and confirm its wild rice allele improves rice blast resistance. Collectively, our study provides a haplotype-resolved gapless reference genome and demonstrates a highly efficient platform for gene identification from wild rice.

The grass spikelet is a unique inflorescence structure that determines grain size. Although many genetic factors have been well characterized for grain size and glume development, the underlying molecular mechanisms in rice are far from established. Here, we isolated rice gene, AGL1 that controlled grain size and determines the fate of the sterile lemma. Loss of function of AGL1 produced larger grains and reduced the size of the sterile lemma. Larger grains in the agl1 mutant were caused by a larger number of cells that were longer and wider than in the wild type. The sterile lemma in the mutant spikelet was converted to a rudimentary glume-like organ. Our findings showed that the AGL1 (also named LAX1) protein positively regulated G1 expression, and negatively regulated NSG1 expression, thereby affecting the fate of the sterile lemma. Taken together, our results revealed that AGL1 played a key role in negative regulation of grain size by controlling cell proliferation and expansion, and supported the opinion that rudimentary glume and sterile lemma in rice are homologous organs.

The high viscosity and oxygen content of pyrolysis crude oil hinder the advancement of pyrolysis technology. To address the issue, this study conducted hydrodeoxygenation upgrading experiments on pyrolysis crude oil using hydrothermal directional conversion. A variable analysis was performed to assess the differences in upgrading effects based on the active metal (Ru, Pt) and the supports (activated carbon, Nb2O5, MgO) of the supported catalyst, and further investigations were conducted on the catalyst with bimetallic doping modification. Optimal reaction conditions were determined by adjusting the reaction temperature. Additionally, directional conversion studies of model compounds were carried out to elucidate the reaction pathway. The results indicated that the Pt/MgO catalyst achieved the highest yield of stable and combustible compounds (hydrocarbons, alcohols, ethers, esters, and ketones), with a yield of 17.8 wt%. Upon modification with Ni doping, the yield increased by 49.5%. The upgrading effect improved with an increase in reaction temperature, and the yield of target compounds was 26.7 wt% at 290 °C, with an energy conversion rate of 72.6% and a selectivity of 75.8%. Moreover, the physicochemical properties of the upgraded oil were similar to those of ethanol. All three model compounds underwent 100% conversion. This study provides both experimental support and a theoretical foundation for the further development of biomass conversion technology.

Summary: Timely adjustments of antibiotic and corticosteroid treatments are vital for patients with diffuse parenchymal lung diseases (DPLDs). In this study, 41 DPLD patients with negative metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) results who were responsive to corticosteroids were enrolled. Among these patients, about 26.8% suffered from drug-induced DPLD, while 9.8% presented autoimmune-related DPLD. Following the report of the negative mNGS results, in 34 patients with complete antibiotics administration profiles, 79.4% (27/34) patients discontinued antibiotics after receiving negative mNGS results. Moreover, 70.7% (29/41) patients began or increased the administration of corticosteroid upon receipt of negative mNGS results. In the microbiota analysis, Staphylococcus and Stenotrophomonas showed higher detection rates in patients with oxygenation index (OI) below 300, while Escherichia and Stenotrophomonas had higher abundance in patients with pleural effusion. In summary, our findings demonstrated the clinical significance of mNGS in assisting the antibiotic and corticosteroid treatment adjustments in corticosteroid-responsive DPLD. Lung microbiota may imply the severity of the disease.

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a debilitating mental health condition that poses significant risks and burdens. Resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) has emerged as a promising tool in investigating the neural mechanisms underlying MDD. However, a comprehensive bibliometric analysis of resting-state fMRI in MDD is currently lacking. Here, we aimed to thoroughly explore the trends and frontiers of resting-state fMRI in MDD research. The relevant publications were retrieved from the Web of Science database for the period between 1998 and 2022, and the CiteSpace software was employed to identify the influence of authors, institutions, countries/regions, and the latest research trends. A total of 1501 publications met the search criteria, revealing a gradual increase in the number of annual publications over the years. China contributed the largest publication output, accounting for the highest percentage among all countries. Particularly, the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Capital Medical University, and Harvard Medical School were identified as key institutions that have made substantial contributions to this growth. Neuroimage, Biological Psychiatry, Journal of Affective Disorders, and Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America are among the influential journals in the field of resting-state fMRI research in MDD. Burst keywords analysis suggest the emerging research frontiers in this field are characterized by prominent keywords such as dynamic functional connectivity, cognitive control network, transcranial brain stimulation, and childhood trauma. Overall, our study provides a systematic overview into the historical development, current status, and future trends of resting-state fMRI in MDD, thus offering a useful guide for researchers to plan their future research.

Abstract Objective This study aims to identify the most effective diagnostic method for distinguishing pathogenic and non-pathogenic Gram-negative bacteria (GNB) in suspected pneumonia cases using metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) on bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) samples. Methods The effectiveness of mNGS was assessed on BALF samples collected from 583 patients, and the results were compared with those from microbiological culture and final clinical diagnosis. Three interpretational approaches were evaluated for diagnostic accuracy. Results mNGS outperformed culture significantly. Among the interpretational approaches, Clinical Interpretation (CI) demonstrated the best diagnostic performance with a sensitivity of 87.3%, specificity of 100%, positive predictive value of 100%, and negative predictive value of 98.3%. CI’s specificity was significantly higher than Simple Interpretation (SI) at 37.9%. Additionally, CI excluded some microorganisms identified as putative pathogens by SI, including Haemophilus parainfluenzae, Haemophilus parahaemolyticus, and Klebsiella aerogenes. Conclusion Proper interpretation of mNGS data is crucial for accurately diagnosing respiratory infections caused by GNB. CI is recommended for this purpose.

The morphological development of rice (Oryza sativa L.) leaves is closely related to plant architecture, physiological activities, and resistance. However, it is unclear whether there is a co-regulatory relationship between the morphological development of leaves and adaptation to drought environment. In this study, a drought-sensitive, roll-enhanced, and narrow-leaf mutant (renl1) was induced from a semi-rolled leaf mutant (srl1) by ethyl methane sulfonate (EMS), which was obtained from Nipponbare (NPB) through EMS. Map-based cloning and functional validation showed that RENL1 encodes a cellulose synthase, allelic to NRL1/OsCLSD4. The RENL1 mutation resulted in reduced vascular bundles, vesicular cells, cellulose, and hemicellulose contents in cell walls, diminishing the water-holding capacity of leaves. In addition, the root system of the renl1 mutant was poorly developed and its ability to scavenge reactive oxygen species (ROS) was decreased, leading to an increase in ROS after drought stress. Meanwhile, genetic results showed that RENL1 and SRL1 synergistically regulated cell wall components. Our results revealed a theoretical basis for further elucidating the molecular regulation mechanism of cellulose on rice drought tolerance, and provided a new genetic resource for enhancing the synergistic regulation network of plant type and stress resistance, thereby realizing simultaneous improvement of multiple traits in rice.

The lower limbs play an important role in daily human activities. Therefore, a 3D tibial model is constructed, and finite element analysis is performed to investigate the biomechanical characteristics and injury tolerance of lower limb flexion movement. The maximum equivalent stress at 30° flexion was 19.1 MPa and 31.2 MPa in the normal and dynamic eversion positions, respectively, of the knee joint, 1.4 MPa and 1.1 MPa in the medial tibial plateau, and 1.8 MPa and 1.2 MPa in the lateral tibial plateau. The peak contact force was generally approximately 4000 N when different positions of the tibia were impacted. The maximum contact force of the frontal impact was larger than that of the external impact at 4109 N and 3927 N, respectively. The dynamic knee valgus posture and lateral impacts are more likely to cause tibial injury. The findings of this study provide information for the prevention of sports injuries and rehabilitation treatment.

Lesion mimic mutants (LMMs) are advantageous materials for studying programmed cell death (PCD). Although some rice LMM genes have been cloned, the diversity of functions of these genes indicates that the mechanism of cell death regulation in LMMs needs further study. In this study, we identified a rice light-dependent leaf lesion mimic mutant 4 (llm4) that showed abnormal chloroplast structure, photoinhibition, reduced photosynthetic protein levels, massive accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), and PCD. Map-based cloning and complementation testing revealed that LLM4 encodes zeaxanthin epoxidase (ZEP), an enzyme involved in the xanthophyll cycle, which functions in plant photoprotection, ROS scavenging, and carotenoid and abscisic acid (ABA) biosynthesis. The ABA content was decreased, and the contents of 24 carotenoids differed between the llm4 mutant and the wild type (WT). The llm4 mutant showed reduced dormancy and greater sensitive to ABA than the WT. We concluded that the mutation of LLM4 resulted in the failure of xanthophyll cycle, in turn causing ROS accumulation. The excessive ROS accumulation damaged chloroplast structure and induced PCD, leading eventually to the formation of lesion mimics.

Increasing tiller number is a target of high-yield rice breeding. Identification of tiller-defect mutants and their corresponding genes is helpful for clarifying the molecular mechanism of rice tillering. Summarizing research progress on the two processes of rice tiller formation, namely the formation and growth of axillary meristem, this paper reviews the effects of genetic factors, endogenous hormones, and exogenous environment on rice tillering, finding that multiple molecular mechanisms and signal pathways regulating rice tillering cooperate rice tillering, and discusses future research objectives and application of its regulatory mechanism. Elucidation of theis mechanism will be helpful for breeding high-yielding rice cultivars with ideal plant type via molecular design breeding.

Abstract Increasing evidence has demonstrated that drug resistance can be acquired in cancer cells by kinase rewiring, which is an obstacle for efficient cancer therapy. However, it is technically challenging to measure the expression of protein kinases on large scale due to their dynamic range in human proteome. We employ a lysine-targeted sulfonyl fluoride probe, named XO44, which binds to 133 endogenous kinases in intact lenvatinib-resistant hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells. This analysis reveals cyclin-dependent kinase 6 (CDK6) upregulation, which is mediated by ERK/YAP1 signaling cascade. Functional analyses show that CDK6 is crucial in regulation of acquired lenvatinib resistance in HCC via augmentation of liver cancer stem cells with clinical significance. We identify a noncanonical pathway of CDK6 in which it binds and regulates the activity of GSK3β, leading to activation of Wnt/β-catenin signaling. Consistently, CDK6 inhibition by palbociclib or degradation by proteolysis targeting chimeras (PROTACs) is highly synergistic with lenvatinib in vitro. Interestingly, palbociclib not only exerts maximal growth suppressive effect with lenvatinib in lenvatinib-resistant HCC models but also reshapes the tumor immune microenvironment. Together, we unveil CDK6 as a druggable target in lenvatinib-resistant HCC and highlight the use of a chemical biology approach to understand nongenetic resistance mechanisms in cancer.

Abstract Soil salinization is one of the most common abiotic stresses of rice, which seriously affects the normal growth of rice. Breeding salt-tolerant varieties have become one of the important ways to ensure food security and sustainable agricultural development. However, the mechanisms underlying salt tolerance control still need to be clarified. In this study, we identified a mutant, termed salt-tolerant and small grains(sts), with salt tolerance and small grains. Gene cloning and physiological and biochemical experiments reveal that sts is a novel mutant allele of Mitogen-activated protein Kinase Kinase 4 (OsMKK4), which controls the grain size, and has recently been found to be related to salt tolerance in rice. Functional analysis showed that OsSTS is constitutively expressed throughout the tissue, and its proteins are localized to the nucleus, cell membrane, and cytoplasm. It was found that the loss of OsSTS function enhanced the salt tolerance of rice seedlings, and further studies showed that the loss of OsSTS function increased the ROS clearance rate of rice seedlings, independent of ionic toxicity. In order to explore the salt tolerance mechanism of sts, we found that the salt tolerance of sts is also regulated by ABA through high-throughput mRNA sequencing. Salt and ABA treatment showed that ABA might alleviate the inhibitory effect of salt stress on root length in sts. These results revealed new functions of grain size gene OsMKK4, expanded new research ideas related to salt tolerance mechanism and hormone regulation network, and provided a theoretical basis for salt-tolerant rice breeding.

Alternative splicing is an essential post-transcriptional regulatory mechanism that diversifies gene function by generating multiple protein isoforms from a single gene and act as a crucial role in insect environmental adaptation. Olfaction, a key sense for insect adaptation, relies heavily on the antennae, which are the primary olfactory organs expressing most of the olfactory genes. Despite the extensive annotation of olfactory genes within insect antennal tissues facilitated by high-throughput sequencing technology advancements, systematic analyses of alternative splicing are still relatively less. In this study, we focused on the oriental fruit fly (Bactrocera dorsalis), a significant pest of fruit crops. We performed a detailed analysis of alternative splicing in its antennae by utilizing the full-length transcriptome of its antennal tissue and the insect’s genome. The results revealed 8600 non-redundant full-length transcripts identified in the oriental fruit fly antennal full-length transcriptome, spanning 4,145 gene loci. Over 40% of these loci exhibited multiple isoforms. Among these, 161 genes showed sex-biased isoform switching, involving seven different types of alternative splicing. Notably, events involving alternative transcription start sites (ATSS) and alternative transcription termination sites (ATTS) were the most common. Of all the genes undergoing ATSS and ATTS alternative splicing between male and female, 32 genes were alternatively spliced in protein coding regions, potentially affecting protein function. These genes were categorized based on the length of the sex-biased isoforms, with the highest difference in isoform fraction (dIF) associated with the ATSS type, including genes such as BdorABCA13, BdorCAT2, and BdorTSN3. Additionally, transcription factor binding sites for doublesex were identified upstream of both BdorABCA13 and BdorCAT2. Besides being expressed in the antennal tissues, BdorABCA13 and BdorCAT2 are also expressed in the mouthparts, legs, and genitalia of both female and male adults, suggesting their functional diversity. This study reveals alternative splicing events in the antennae of Bactrophora dorsalis from two aspects: odorant receptor genes and other types of genes expressed in the antennae. This study not only provides a research foundation for understanding the regulation of gene function by alternative splicing in the oriental fruit fly but also offers new insights for utilizing olfaction-based behavioral manipulation techniques to manage this pest.

Coarse-grained models describe the macroscopic mean response of a process at large scales, which derives from stochastic processes at small scales. Common examples include accounting for velocity fluctuations in a turbulent fluid flow model and cloud evolution in climate models. Most existing techniques for constructing coarse-grained models feature ill-defined parameters whose values are arbitrarily chosen (e.g., a window size), are narrow in their applicability (e.g., only applicable to time series or spatial data), or cannot readily incorporate physics information. Here, we introduce the concept of physics-guided Gaussian process regression as a machine-learning-based coarse-graining technique that is broadly applicable and amenable to input from known physics-based relationships. Using a pair of case studies derived from molecular dynamics simulations, we demonstrate the attractive properties and superior performance of physics-guided Gaussian processes for coarse-graining relative to prevalent benchmarks. The key advantage of Gaussian-process-based coarse-graining is its ability to seamlessly integrate data-driven and physics-based information.

Abstract Background Mitochondrion is the key respiratory organ and participate in multiple anabolism and catabolism pathways in eukaryote. However, the underlying mechanism of how mitochondrial membrane proteins regulate leaf and grain development remains to be further elucidated. Results Here, a mitochondria-defective mutant narrow leaf and slender grain 1 (nlg1) was identified from an EMS-treated mutant population, which exhibits narrow leaves and slender grains. Moreover, nlg1 also presents abnormal mitochondria structure and was sensitive to the inhibitors of mitochondrial electron transport chain. Map-based cloning and transgenic functional confirmation revealed that NLG1 encodes a mitochondrial import inner membrane translocase containing a subunit Tim21. GUS staining assay and RT-qPCR suggested that NLG1 was mainly expressed in leaves and panicles. The expression level of respiratory function and auxin response related genes were significantly down-regulated in nlg1, which may be responsible for the declination of ATP production and auxin content. Conclusions These results suggested that NLG1 plays an important role in the regulation of leaf and grain size development by maintaining mitochondrial homeostasis. Our finding provides a novel insight into the effects of mitochondria development on leaf and grain morphogenesis in rice.

Chlorophyll, a green pigment in photosynthetic organisms, is generated by two distinct biochemical pathways, the tetrapyrrole biosynthetic pathway (TBP) and the methylerythritol 4-phosphate (MEP) pathway. MEP is one of the pathways for isoprenoid synthesis in plants, with 4-hydroxy-3-methylbut-2-enyl diphosphate reductase (HDR) catalyzing its last step. In this study, we isolated a green-revertible yellow leaf mutant gry3 in rice and cloned the GRY3 gene, which encodes a HDR participating in geranylgeranyl diphosphate (GGPP) biosynthesis in chloroplast. A complementation experiment confirmed that a missense mutation (C to T) in the fourth exon of LOC_Os03g52170 causes the gry3 phenotype. Under high temperature and high light, transcript and protein abundances of GRY3 were reduced in the gry3 mutant. Transcriptional expression of chlorophyll biosynthesis, chloroplast development, and genes involved in photosynthesis were also affected. Excessive reactive oxygen species accumulation, cell death, and photosynthetic proteins degradation were occurred in the mutant. The content of GGPP was reduced in gry3 compared with Nipponbare, resulting in a stoichiometric imbalance of tetrapyrrolic chlorophyll precursors. These results shed light on the response of chloroplast biogenesis and maintenance in plants to high-temperature and high-light stress.

Abstract Background Asian rice is one of the world’s most widely cultivated crops. Large-scale resequencing analyses have been undertaken to explore the domestication and de-domestication genomic history of Asian rice, but the evolution of rice is still under debate. Results Here, we construct a syntelog-based rice pan-genome by integrating and merging 74 high-accuracy genomes based on long-read sequencing, encompassing all ecotypes and taxa of Oryza sativa and Oryza rufipogon. Analyses of syntelog groups illustrate subspecies divergence in gene presence-and-absence and haplotype composition and identify massive genomic regions putatively introgressed from ancient Geng/japonica to ancient Xian/indica or its wild ancestor, including almost all well-known domestication genes and a 4.5-Mbp centromere-spanning block, supporting a single domestication event in main rice subspecies. Genomic comparisons between weedy and cultivated rice highlight the contribution from wild introgression to the emergence of de-domestication syndromes in weedy rice. Conclusions This work highlights the significance of inter-taxa introgression in shaping diversification and divergence in rice evolution and provides an exploratory attempt by utilizing the advantages of pan-genomes in evolutionary studies.

Numerous insects are attracted to low levels of ammonia, utilizing it as a cue to locate food sources. The Ammonium Transporter (Amt), a highly conserved, atypical olfactory receptor, has been shown to mediate the detection of ammonia in insects. While the attraction of Tephritidae to ammonia is well established, knowledge about the Amt in this family is limited. The species Bactrocera dorsalis (Hendel 1912), Bactrocera cucurbitae (Coquillett 1899), Bactrocera correcta Bezzi 1916 and Bactrocera tau (Walker 1849), which are common agricultural pests within Tephritidae, exhibit numerous ecological similarities, offering a solid foundation for studying Amt characteristics in this family. In this study, we elucidated the sequences, evolutionary relationships, and expression patterns of Amt in these four species. The results indicated that these Amts share the same open reading frame, containing 1770 bp that encode a protein of 589 amino acid residues. These Amt proteins exhibit the typical structural characteristics of Amts, including an 11-transmembrane domain with an extracellular N-terminus and an intracellular C-terminus. They also have the ability to form trimers in the membrane. Additionally, they contain three conserved amino acid residues essential for ammonia transport: A189, H195, and H352. Phylogenetic and expression pattern analyses showed that they are highly conserved in Diptera and are significantly expressed in antennae. This study is the first report characterizing the Amt gene in four Tephritidae species. These findings provide a foundation for further exploration into the roles of these genes in their particular biological contexts.

The heading date, a critical trait influencing the rice yield and quality, has always been a hot topic in breeding research. Appropriately delaying the flowering time of excellent northern rice varieties is of great significance for improving yields and enhancing regional adaptability during the process for introducing varieties from north to south. In this study, genes influencing the heading date were identified through genome-wide association studies (GWAS). Using KenDao 12 (K12), an excellent cultivar from northern China, as the material, the specific flowering activator, OsMADS50, was edited using the genome-editing method to regulate the heading date to adapt to the southern planting environment. The results indicated that the osmads50 mutant line of K12 flowered about a week later, with a slight increase in the yield and good adaptability in the southern region in China. Additionally, the expressions of key flowering regulatory genes, such as Hd1, Ghd7, Ehd1, Hd3a, and RFT1, were reduced in the mutant plants, corroborating the delayed flowering phenotype. Yield trait analysis revealed that the primary factor for improved yield was an increase in the number of effective tillers, although there is potential for further enhancements in the seed-setting rate and grain plumpness. Furthermore, there were significant increases in the length-to-width ratio of the rice grains, fat content, and seed transparency, all contributing to an overall improvement in the rice quality. In summary, this study successfully obtained a rice variety with a delayed growth period through OsMADS50 gene editing, effectively implementing the strategy for adapting northern rice varieties to southern climates. This achievement significantly supports efforts to enhance the rice yield and quality as well as to optimize production management practices.

A differentiated creative search algorithm with multi-strategy improvement (MSDCS) is proposed for the path planning problem for agricultural UAVs under different complicated situations. First, the good point set and oppositional learning strategies are used to effectively improve the quality of population diversity; the adaptive fitness–distance balance reset strategy is proposed to motivate the low performers to move closer to the region near the optimal solution and find the potential optimal solution; and the vertical and horizontal crossover strategy with random dimensions is proposed to improve the computational accuracy of the algorithm and the ability to jump out of the local optimum. Second, the MSDCS is compared to different algorithms using the IEEE_CEC2017 test set, which consists of 29 test functions. The results demonstrate that the MSDCS achieves the optimal value in 23 test functions, surpassing the comparison algorithms in terms of convergence accuracy, speed, and stability by at least one order of magnitude difference, and it is ranked No. 1 in terms of comprehensive performance. Finally, the enhanced algorithm was employed to address the issue of path planning for agricultural UAVs. The experimental results demonstrate that the MSDCS outperforms comparison algorithms in path planning across various contexts. Consequently, the MSDCS can generate optimal pathways that are both rational and safe for agricultural UAV operations.

Accurately understanding the travel demand of urban rail transit (URT) systems is crucial for effective operational management. Despite the recognition that the diversity in human activity patterns results in different travel demands, few studies have thoroughly investigated the heterogeneity among passengers and its impact on URT ridership. This study utilizes smart card data collected from the Beijing Subway to categorize passengers into four groups: tourist passengers, flexible commuters, regular commuters, and life-oriented passengers, based on their spatiotemporal travel patterns. Furthermore, a Multiscale Geographically Weighted Regression (MGWR) model is employed to examine the relationship between station-level ridership of URT and its determinants, including the built environment and station properties, for each passenger group. The results indicate that the influence of these determinants on station-level ridership varies across passenger groups and spatial scales. For instance, regular commuters exhibit lower sensitivity to accessibility on workdays, whereas those unfamiliar with the URT network are more concerned about the bus accessibility in pedestrian- or bicycle-unfriendly areas. Notably, for tourist and life-oriented passengers, the stations significantly affected by population density are concentrated in areas with a higher proportion of elderly individuals. Conversely, for flexible and regular commuters, these stations are predominantly situated in areas associated with internet technology and scientific research. These findings are valuable for policymakers in designing strategies tailored to different passenger groups to balance trip demand and capacity, thereby improving URT services and promoting a sustainable urban environment.

Photosynthesis occurs mainly in chloroplasts, whose development is regulated by proteins encoded by nuclear genes. Among them, pentapeptide repeat (PPR) proteins participate in organelle RNA editing. Although there are more than 450 members of the PPR protein family in rice, only a few affect RNA editing in rice chloroplasts. Gene editing technology has created new rice germplasm and mutants, which could be used for rice breeding and gene function study. This study evaluated the functions of OsPPR9 in chloroplast RNA editing in rice. The osppr9 mutants were obtained by CRISPR/Cas9, which showed yellowing leaves and a lethal phenotype, with suppressed expression of genes associated with chloroplast development and accumulation of photosynthetic-related proteins. In addition, loss of OsPPR9 protein function reduces the editing efficiency of rps8-C182, rpoC2-C4106, rps14-C80, and ndhB-C611 RNA editing sites, which affects chloroplast growth and development in rice. Our data showed that OsPPR9 is highly expressed in rice leaves and encodes a DYW-PPR protein localized in chloroplasts. Besides, the OsPPR9 protein was shown to interact with OsMORF2 and OsMORF9. Together, our findings provide insights into the role of the PPR protein in regulating chloroplast development in rice.

Sika deer are known to prefer oak leaves, which are rich in tannins and toxic to most mammals; however, the genetic mechanisms underlying their unique ability to adapt to living in the jungle are still unclear. In identifying the mechanism responsible for the tolerance of a highly toxic diet, we have made a major advancement by explaining the genome of sika deer. We generated the first high-quality, chromosome-level genome assembly of sika deer and measured the correlation between tannin intake and RNA expression in 15 tissues through 180 experiments. Comparative genome analyses showed that the UGT and CYP gene families are functionally involved in the adaptation of sika deer to high-tannin food, especially the expansion of the UGT family 2 subfamily B of UGT genes. The first chromosome-level assembly and genetic characterization of the tolerance to a highly toxic diet suggest that the sika deer genome may serve as an essential resource for understanding evolutionary events and tannin adaptation. Our study provides a paradigm of comparative expressive genomics that can be applied to the study of unique biological features in non-model animals.

Abstract Aim This study aimed to evaluate the effects of using the teach-back method among women with limited maternal health literacy (LMHL) on maternal health literacy(MHL), postpartum health behaviours and maternal-infant health outcomes. Methods A randomized controlled study was conducted in the obstetrics department of Anhui Provincial Hospital, China. A total of 258 pregnant women with LMHL were recruited at the point of admission to the hospital for birth and randomly assigned to the control group (n = 130), where women received routine education sessions, and the teach-back group (n = 128), where women received routine education sessions plus a teach-back intervention. The two groups were assessed in terms of MHL before and after the intervention, breastfeeding execution, uptake of 42-day postpartum check-ups, complete uptake of one-time recommended vaccines, and physical health outcomes. Statistical tests were employed for data analysis. Results There was no significant difference between the two groups in terms of MHL and other social, demographic, and medical status at baseline. After the intervention, the teach-back group had a higher level of MHL (p

This paper provides a novel meta-heuristic optimization algorithm for solving continuous optimization problems efficiently in the field of numerical and engineering optimization: Piranha Foraging Optimization Algorithm (PFOA). The algorithm is inspired by the flexible and mobile foraging behavior of piranha swarm and divides their foraging behavior into three patterns: localized group attack, bloodthirsty cluster attack and scavenging foraging, simulates the above behaviors to construct two dynamic search processes for exploration and exploitation. PFOA uses three strategies of non-linear parameter control, population survival and reverse evasion search to enable populations to have better population diversity at different stages of the search and to help find better solutions. To gain insight into the performance of PFOA, visualization methods were used to assess the efficiency of PFOA optimization and to analyse the impact of the characteristics of the three foraging modes, the sensitivity of the parameters and the size of the piranha population on the algorithm. The algorithm performance was further tested with 27 CEC benchmark functions and four real engineering design optimization problems, and the results were compared with 13 well-known meta-heuristics. Test results based on statistical methods such as box-line plots, Wilcoxon rank sum test and Friedman test in multiple dimensions (30, 50, 100 and fixed dimensions) show significant differences compared to other algorithms and that the performance of the algorithm is stable and in significant improvement. The unique advantages of PFOA in terms of the equilibrium of convergence speed and exploration can avoid getting trapped in local optimum regions and effectively solve optimization problems in complex search spaces.

Background This study aimed to investigate the relationship between plasma D-dimer levels, clinicopathological features, and clinical outcomes in patients with biopsy-proven diabetic nephropathy (DN).Methods A total of 137 patients with biopsy-proven DN were enrolled in this two-center cohort study. Patients were stratified into tertiles based on plasma D-dimer levels. We investigated the relationship between plasma D-dimer levels and clinical outcomes, including a composite of death, a 40% decline in estimated glomerular filtration rate (e-GFR) from baseline, or end-stage renal disease (ESRD) (defined as e-GFR < 15 mL/min/1.73 m2 or need for renal replacement therapy including hemodialysis, peritoneal dialysis, or kidney transplantation), assessed using Cox regression models with adjustment for confounders.Results At baseline, the mean age was 52.61 ± 11.63 years, and the mean e-GFR was 58.02 ± 28.77 mL/min/1.73 m2. During a median 26-month follow-up period, 65 (47% of patients) achieved clinical outcomes. Compared with the low plasma D-dimer level group, those with higher plasma D-dimer levels were more likely to have higher 24-h proteinuria (p = .002), lower e-GFR (p = .001), lower hemoglobin (p = .001), a higher glomerular lesion class (p = .03), and higher interstitial fibrosis and tubular atrophy (IFTA) scores (p = .002). After adjustment for demographic, DN-specific covariates, and treatments, it was observed that a higher tertile of plasma D-dimer was nonlinearly associated with an increased risk of the clinical outcomes (Hazard Ratio (HR) for tertile 2 vs. 1, 1.7; 95% Confidence Interval (CI), 0.80–3.75; HR for tertile 3 vs. 1, 2.2; 95% CI, 0.93–5.27; p for trend = .001) in the Cox proportional hazards models.Conclusion In this study, DN patients with higher levels of plasma D-dimer had higher 24-h proteinuria, lower e-GFR, a higher glomerular lesion class, and higher IFTA scores. Furthermore, a high level of plasma D-dimer was nonlinearly associated with DN progression.

ObjectiveTo observe the effect of five elements music concrete hypnosis technique on depressive mood state, somatic motor function and activities of daily living of patients with subthreshold depression after stroke.MethodsA total of 78 patients with subthreshold depression after stroke in the Second Affiliated Hospital of Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine were randomly divided into control group and observation group, with 39 cases in each group. During the treatment,a total of 3, 1 case fell off/stopped in the control group and the observation group respectively. Finally, a total of 36,38 cases were included in the control group and the observation group respectively. The control group received individualized emotional support from medical staff with no professional psychological training an conventional treatment. The observation group received five elements music concrete hypnosis technique intervention on the basis of conventional treatment. The hypnotic relaxation and movement guidance language in the background of Jue tune of five element music were recorded by professional psychological technicians, and the patients received motor imagination training in the music background under the guidance of therapists. Both groups were treated for 30 minutes a time, once a day, six times a week, lasting for four weeks. Before treatment and four weeks after treatment, the Hamilton depression scale 17 (HAMD-17) and the center for epidemiologic studies depression scale (CES-D) were used to evaluate the depressive mood state of patients; the Fugl-Meyer assessment (FMA) was used to evaluate somatic motor function; the modified Barthel index (MBI) scale was used to evaluate the ability of activities of daily living. In addition, 12 patients in the observation group underwent resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) to observe the activation range of brain regions.ResultsCompared with those before treatment, the scores of HAMD-17 and CES-D of both groups decreased significantly after treatment, and the scores of FMA and MBI increased significantly (PP

Abstract As a result of global warming, plants are subjected to ever-increasing abiotic stresses including heat and drought. Drought stress frequently co-occurs with heat stress as a result of water evaporation. These stressors have adverse effects on crop production, which in turn affects human food security. Rice is a major food resource grown widely in crop-producing regions throughout the world. However, increasingly common heat and drought stresses in growth regions can have negative impacts on seedling morphogenesis, reproductive organ establishment, overall yield, and quality. This review centers on responses to heat and drought stress in rice. Current knowledge of molecular regulation mechanisms is summarized. We focus on approaches to cope with heat and drought stress, both at the genetic level and from an agricultural practice perspective. This review establishes a basis for improving rice stress tolerance, grain quality, and yield for human benefit.

Summary: Transcriptional regulation of secondary cell wall (SCW) formation is strictly controlled by a complex network of transcription factors in vascular plants and has been shown to be mediated by a group of NAC master switches. In this study, we show that in a bHLH transcription factor, OsbHLH002/OsICE1, its loss-of-function mutant displays a lodging phenotype. Further results show that OsbHLH002 and Oryza sativa homeobox1 (OSH1) interact and share a set of common targets. In addition, the DELLA protein SLENDER RICE1, rice ortholog of KNOTTED ARABIDOPSIS THALIANA7, and OsNAC31 interact with OsbHLH002 and OSH1 and regulate their binding capacity on OsMYB61, a key regulatory factor in SCW development. Collectively, our results indicate OsbHLH002 and OSH1 as key regulators in SCW formation and shed light on molecular mechanisms of how active and repressive factors precisely orchestrate SCW synthesis in rice, which may provide a strategy for manipulating plant biomass production.

Wild rice (Zizania spp.), an aquatic grass belonging to the subfamily Gramineae, has a high economic value. Zizania provides food (such as grains and vegetables), a habitat for wild animals, and paper-making pulps, possesses certain medicinal values, and helps control water eutrophication. Zizania is an ideal resource for expanding and enriching a rice breeding gene bank to naturally preserve valuable characteristics lost during domestication. With the Z. latifolia and Z. palustris genomes completely sequenced, fundamental achievements have been made toward understanding the origin and domestication, as well as the genetic basis of important agronomic traits of this genus, substantially accelerating the domestication of this wild plant. The present review summarizes the research results on the edible history, economic value, domestication, breeding, omics research, and important genes of Z. latifolia and Z. palustris over the past decades. These findings broaden the collective understanding of Zizania domestication and breeding, furthering human domestication, improvement, and long-term sustainability of wild plant cultivation.

The development of rice cultivars with improved nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) is desirable for sustainable agriculture. Achieving this goal depends in part on understanding how rice responds to low soil nitrogen (N) and identifying causative genes underlying this trait. To identify quantitative trait loci (QTL) or genes associated with low N response, we conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) using a diverse panel of 230 rice accessions and performed a transcriptomic investigation of rice accessions with differential responses to low N stress at two N levels. We detected 411 GWAS-associated genes in 5 QTL and 2722 differentially expressed genes in response to low N, of which 24 were identified by both methods and ranked according to gene annotations, literature queries, gene expression, and genetic diversity analysis. The large-scale datasets obtained from this study reveal low N-responsive characteristics and provide insights towards understanding the regulatory mechanisms of N-deficiency tolerance in rice, and the candidate genes or QTL would be valuable resources for increasing rice NUE via molecular biotechnology.

In order to obtain bright aluminum alloy wires and eliminate the environmental and human hazards of traditional chemical polishing, the H _3 PO _4 -H _2 SO _4 system chemical polishing process was developed for SAL5087, and the surface roughness was measured by laser confocal microscopy and the surface morphology was observed by sweeping electron microscopy as the evaluation index of the polishing quality. The process optimization was carried out by orthogonal experiments and the role of each component was analyzed. The experiments showed that phosphoric acid dominates the polishing process, which can effectively enhance the polishing effect under the synergistic effect with various additives. The surface roughness of the polished wire was reduced to 0.257 μm in the optimum process, and the surface was free of defects such as burrs and scratches.

Yan, Yang, Yu, Shang et al. provide a chromosome-level reference genome for Chinese wild rice (Zizania latifolia) along with phylogenetic and transcriptomic analyses. Their results identify candidate genes related to seed shattering and synteny with the rice phytocassane biosynthetic gene cluster.

Xanthine dehydrogenase, a member of the molybdenum enzyme family, participates in purine metabolism and catalyzes the generation of ureides from xanthine and hypoxanthine. However, the mechanisms by which xanthine dehydrogenase affects rice growth and development are poorly understood. In the present study, we identified a mutant with early leaf senescence and reduced tillering that we named early senescence and less-tillering 1 (esl1). Map-based cloning revealed that ESL1 encodes a xanthine dehydrogenase, and it was expressed in all tissues. Chlorophyll content was reduced and chloroplast maldevelopment was severe in the esl1 mutant. Mutation of ESL1 led to decreases in allantoin, allantoate, and ABA contents. Further analysis revealed that the accumulation of reactive oxygen species in esl1 resulted in decreased photosynthesis and impaired chloroplast development, along with increased sensitivity to abscisic acid and abiotic stresses. Ttranscriptome analysis showed that the ESL1 mutation altered the expression of genes involved in the photosynthesis process and reactive oxygen species metabolism. Our results suggest that ESL1 is involved in purine metabolism and the induction of leaf senescence. These findings reveal novel molecular mechanisms of ESL1 gene-mediated plant growth and leaf senescence.

Moderate leaf rolling can maintain leaf erectness, improve light transmittance in the population, and improve light energy utilization, thereby increasing rice yield. This study used ethyl methanesulfonate (EMS) to treat Yunjing 17 (YJ17) and obtained a semi-rolled leaf mutant that was named semi-rolledleaf3 (srl3). We found that the rolled-leaf phenotype was due to the aberrant development of bulliform cells and the loss of sclerenchymatous cells. In addition, the shoot and root length of srl3 seedlings differed from the wild type. The srl3 mutant had significantly lower plant height and seed-setting rate but notably greater tiller number, panicle length, and primary branch number per panicle than the wild type. Genetic analysis showed that a single recessive nuclear gene defined the srl3 mutant, and it was precisely located in a 144-kb region between two insertion-deletion (InDel) markers, M8 and M19, on chromosome 2. In this region, no leaf-rolling-related genes have been reported previously. Thus, the study indicated that SRL3 is a novel leaf-rolling-related gene, and the results laid the foundation for the cloning and functional analysis of the SRL3 gene.

We propose a novel continuously tunable delay line in X-cut lithium niobate thin film driven by graphene electrodes, featuring low power consumption and low half-wave voltage-length product. The use of the graphene electrodes combined with the air slots makes the device quite low power consumption. Our designed device, which has a footprint of 8.9 mm × 1.9 mm, is capable of providing a continuously tunable delay range from 0 to 100 ps with minimum 3 dB bandwidth of >20 GHz. By optimizing the width of the waveguide core and the distance between the graphene and the waveguide core, we can obtain the low power consumption and low voltage - length product VπL = 1.12 V·cm at 1550 nm when w = 2 μm and d = 0.3 μm. In addition, the graphene electrode has negligible light absorption with w = 2 μm and d = 0.3 μm, the switching power is 151 mW without air slots, and the switching power is 95.36 mW with air slots etching depth of 5.3 μm formed on both sides of the waveguides. And further, the air slots formed on both sides and at the bottom of the waveguides make a low switching power of 2.85 mW.