Sheng wu gong cheng xue bao = Chinese journal of biotechnology最新文献

Tetrabromobisphenol A (TBBPA), a widely distributed emerging contaminant, exerts stress on microorganisms and undergoes transformation primarily at microinterface regions within soil environments. To systematically elucidate TBBPA migration at the millimeter-scale microinterface and its driving effects on soil microbial communities and metabolic pathways, a millimeter-scale microinterface soil system was constructed and subjected to spatially resolved multi-omics analyses. Results revealed that owing to its pronounced hydrophobicity, TBBPA was strongly enriched within the 0-10 mm surface horizon. By increasing pore abundance and loosening soil aggregates, TBBPA restructured the soil microarchitecture and reshaped microbial ecological niches, leading to a marked decline in α-diversity of bacterial communities within contamination hotspots (decreasing Ace/Chao indices by >42%), with Methylotenera exhibiting the most pronounced shift. Furthermore, TBBPA drove a clear spatial successional gradient: proximal zones were enriched with tolerant and dehalogenating taxa (Micromonospora and Bacillus), whereas distal zones were enriched with ring-cleaving and mineralizing assemblages (Pseudomonas and Methylotenera). Co-occurrence network analysis revealed strong microbial synergism along the vertical axis, characterized by a high proportion of positive correlations (>89%). In contrast, lateral heterogeneity promoted the formation of a compartmentalized network architecture with high modularity (modularity=0.552), which indicated functional differentiation across microenvironments. Metabolomic profiling unveiled a substantial upregulation of key metabolic signatures, including membrane phospholipids, aromatic intermediates, and metal-chelating compounds, in response to TBBPA exposure, alongside a concurrent downregulation of sulfur-related metabolites and signaling molecules. Notably, critical intermediates associated with debromination, ring-opening, and β-oxidation were identified, confirming a multi-enzymatic, stepwise catabolic pathway. This degradation cascade was coupled with the reprogramming of sulfur metabolism, suggesting a metabolic trade-off strategy adopted by soil microbiota during TBBPA detoxification. This study, from a soil remediation perspective, elucidates the microinterface-scale interactions between microorganisms and pollutants, providing a theoretical basis for optimizing microbial consortia and interfacial modifications to enhance the targeted degradation of TBBPA and other hydrophobic organic contaminants.

Foxtail millet (Setaria italica L.) is a C₄ crop mainly cultivated in the semi-arid regions of northern China. With strong drought tolerance and rich genetic resources, this crop serves as an excellent model for the identification of drought tolerance genes in crops. Currently, the identification of drought tolerance genes in foxtail millet primarily relies on the transcriptomic analysis of individual drought-tolerant varieties. However, the research on the quantitative genetics of drought tolerance in foxtail millet is limited, which results in a scarcity of elite haplotypes available for the breeding of drought-tolerant foxtail millet varieties. This study aims to systematically identify genetic loci and key candidate genes linked to drought tolerance in foxtail millet. In this study, we used 400 core germplasm accessions of foxtail millet as research materials to observe the growth status and survival rate of foxtail millet plants under normal and drought conditions, and selected 16 extremely drought-tolerant and 45 extremely drought-intolerant varieties. The genome-wide association studies (GWAS) identified a new drought tolerance-related genetic locus on chromosome 4. Combining gene function analysis, transcriptomic analysis of materials with extreme phenotypes, and haplotype analysis of candidate genes, we found that SiCIPK24 and MYB may be involved in the regulation of drought tolerance in foxtail millet. Additionally, transcriptome data showed that the MAPK signaling pathway, phenylpropanoid metabolism, and plant hormone signaling pathways were affected by drought. The drought tolerance loci and potential drought resistance genes, as well as their elite haplotypes identified in this study, lay a foundation for the breeding of drought-tolerant foxtail millet varieties.

As a core regulatory component of photomorphogenic signaling, phytochrome interacting factor 4 (PIF4) participates in multiple developmental processes in plants. To analyze the function and mechanism of this gene in ornamental plants, this study elucidated the role of PhPIF4 in the branching development of Petunia hybrida and its downstream regulatory pathways through genetic transformation and RNA sequencing (RNA-seq). The results showed that Arabidopsis transgenic lines overexpressing PhPIF4 exhibited reduced branches, whereas PhPIF4-RNAi transgenic lines of P. hybrida displayed significantly increased branches. RNA-seq results revealed that 591 differentially expressed genes in PhPIF4-overexpressing lines were significantly enriched in phytohormone metabolic pathways, and the expression levels of cytokinin biosynthesis-related genes IPT3/5, CYP735A1, and LOG2 were markedly downregulated. Further verification demonstrated that PhPIF4 affected branching by activating the branching inhibitor genes BRC1 and SPL9 and the far-red light chaperone gene FHL. This study provides a theoretical basis for further elucidating the molecular mechanisms by which PhPIF4 regulates the branching of P. hybrida.

Peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) is one of China's important oilseed and economic crops, and its symbiotic nitrogen fixation system formed with rhizobia has significant agricultural and ecological value. The aspartic protease family plays a crucial role in plant stress resistance and hormone signal transduction, while its function in leguminous plants for nodular nitrogen fixation remains unclear. This study identified a specifically expressed aspartic protease family gene, AhAP12, which rapidly responded to rhizobial infection in peanut nodules through bioinformatics analysis. Subcellular localization analysis revealed that AhAP12 was localized to both the nucleus and cell membrane. Moreover, overexpression of AhAP12 in peanut hairy roots significantly increased nodule formation, while silencing AhAP12 markedly reduced nodulation, which indicated that AhAP12 positively regulated peanut nodulation. Further expression analysis revealed that AhAP12 might influence the nodulation process by regulating the expression of multiple key nodulation-related genes, including AhNIN and AhHK. This study is the first to elucidate the role of AhAP12 in symbiotic nitrogen fixation in legumes, providing new theoretical insights into the molecular mechanisms of nodulation and nitrogen fixation. Additionally, it offers valuable genetic resources for breeding new peanut varieties with enhanced nodulation efficiency and improved nitrogen utilization.

The metabolism and quality of cucumber (Cucumis sativus) fruits are modulated by various gene families. Nevertheless, the role of the cytochrome P450 family gene CsCYP90 in cucumber fruit quality remains largely unreported. To conduct an in-depth investigation into the specific function of the CsCYP90 gene in the formation of cucumber fruit quality and analyze its underlying metabolic regulatory mechanism, we cloned CsCYP90 (CsaV3_1G007770) from cucumber and discovered that it had the highest expression level in fruits. Phylogenetic analysis revealed a close evolutionary relationship with melon, placing it within the same CYP90 subclade. Transgenic vectors harboring CsCYP90 were constructed to generate overexpression lines, followed by metabolomic sequencing and physiological assays. Overexpression of CsCYP90 significantly altered the accumulation of various metabolites, including glutamine, adenosine monophosphate, and isomaltose, and enriched multiple biological pathways such as amino acid biosynthesis, pentose phosphate pathway, starch and sucrose metabolism, and phenylpropanoid biosynthesis. These changes result in elevated soluble sugar content and reduced tannin levels in transgenic fruits, improving the overall fruit quality. This study reveals the key role of the CsCYP90 gene in the metabolic regulation and quality formation of cucumber fruits, providing a novel gene target and theoretical basis for cucumber quality improvement.

The fungi-microalgae consortium processs has emerged as one of the most promising biological wastewater treatment technologies due to its environmental friendliness, high treatment efficiency, energy conservation, carbon reduction potential, and the ability to achieve wastewater resource utilization. This study summarizes the development history of the fungi-microalgae consortium technology, explains the possible formation mechanisms and influencing factors of the fungi-microalgae consortiums, reviews the research progress in the application of this technology in wastewater treatment, and finally makes an outlook on its future development prospects. The aim is to provide theoretical reference and practical guidance for further research and engineering applications of fungi-microalgae consortium technology.

Gibberellin 2-oxidase (GA2ox) is a key enzyme regulating the metabolism of gibberellic acid (GAs) in plants. Identifying GA2ox genes in poplar and analyzing their functions in regulating plant growth and development can provide technical support for breeding new poplar varieties. In this study, bioinformatics methods were used to identify and analyze GA2ox genes in hybrid 'Poplar 741'. A total of 34 GA2ox genes were identified, which were distributed on 7 pairs of chromosomes of hybrid 'Poplar 741'. The tissue expression pattern and GA3-induced expression pattern of PthGA2ox19 were analyzed by quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR). It was found that PthGA2ox19 was highly expressed in stems and its expression level was significantly increased under GA3 induction. The overexpression vector of PthGA2ox19 was constructed and transformed into poplar by Agrobacterium transformation method. It was found that the expression level of PthGA2ox19 in transgenic lines was significantly higher than that in wild-type plants, and the phenotypes showed shorter plant height, thinner stem, shorter internodes and smaller leaves. The development of vascular tissues in transgenic plants was analyzed by paraffin section and microscope observation. The analysis of vascular tissue development showed that the vascular bundles of transgenic plants developed abnormally, the diameter of vessels decreased, and the thickness of xylem and phloem became thinner. In this study, 34 GA2ox genes of hybrid 'Poplar 741' were identified. The overexpression of PthGA2ox19 inhibited the growth and vascular tissue development of poplar, indicating that poplar GA2ox is involved in the regulation of plant growth and development, which can provide a new way for poplar plant type breeding.

TCP transcription factors are a class of plant-specific regulators that play pivotal roles in plant growth, development, and stress responses. They modulate target gene expression by binding to promoters via a conserved TCP domain or through interactions with various cofactors, while their own activities are regulated by other transcription factors, miRNAs, and interacting proteins. Recent studies have gradually elucidated the mechanisms by which TCPs mediate flowering time regulation through the photoperiod pathway. Particularly in Arabidopsis thaliana, TCPs integrate light signals to regulate the expression of key flowering genes such as CO, FT, and SOC1. This review systematically summarizes the molecular mechanisms underlying TCP functions, including DNA binding, protein interactions, miRNA-mediated regulation, and epigenetic modifications, with a focus on their roles in floral organ development and the regulation of flowering time. Furthermore, we discuss the potential applications of TCP genes in molecular breeding, with the aim of providing a theoretical basis for comprehensively understanding the TCP regulatory network and leveraging this gene family for crop trait enhancement.

Autophagy plays a crucial role in plant immunity. However, the functions of Arabidopsis thaliana ATG8h and ATG8i in immune responses remain not fully understood. To investigate their roles and underlying molecular mechanisms in resistance to biotrophic bacteria, we performed disease resistance assay by inoculating the atg8h/atg8i double mutant we previously generated with the biotrophic bacterial pathogen Pseudomonas syringae pv. Tomato DC3000 (Pst DC3000). The results showed that the atg8h/atg8i double mutant exhibited enhanced resistance to Pst DC3000. Consistent with the enhanced resistance, the reactive oxygen species accumulation and the callose deposition induced by G. cichoracearum infection were significantly higher in the atg8h/atg8i double mutant lines than in the wildtype Col-0 plants. However, the enhanced disease resistance was independent of the activation of the MAPK pathway. Taken together, our results revealed that the ATG8h/ATG8i-parcitipated autophagy pathway plays a negative role in plant resistance against biotrophic pathogens. This study laid a foundation for enhancing broad-spectrum resistance in plants through manipulating the expression of ATG8h and ATG8i.

The natural resistance-associated macrophage protein (NRAMP) family plays a crucial role in the transport of divalent metal ions across various species. In this study, we cloned HrNRAMP1 from sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides subsp. sinensis Rousi) and investigated its expression pattern under lead stress, aiming to provide a theoretical basis for breeding sea buckthorn varieties with reduced lead accumulation. The full-length HrNRAMP1 was cloned via PCR with reference to the genomic data of H. rhamnoides, which was followed by bioinformatics analysis. The subcellular localization and expression patterns of this gene under varying lead stress conditions were examined by transient expression in tobacco leaves and real-time quantitative PCR. The results indicated that the full-length HrNRAMP1 was 1 539 bp, encoding a hydrophobic and stable protein composed of 512 residues. Bioinformatics analysis revealed that the secondary structure of the deduced protein HrNRAMP1 was predominated by α-helices and lacked a signal peptide, which suggested that HrNRAMP1 functioned as a membrane protein with 11 predicted transmembrane domains. Multiple sequence alignment with homologous genes from 13 species demonstrated that HrNRAMP1 contained the solute carrier family 5/6 (SLC5/6) domain, a conserved characteristic domain of the NRAMPgene family. The phylogenetic analysis indicated that HrNRAMP1 was most closely related to members in plants of Solanaceae. The results of tobacco protoplast transformation indicated that HrNRAMP1 was specifically localized to the plasma membrane. RNA sequencing data (RNA-seq) and real time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) validation showed that HrNRAMP1 expression was initially upregulated and subsequently downregulated with the rise in lead ion concentration, peaking at a lead concentration of 2 000 mg/kg. This study suggests that HrNRAMP1 may play a key role in regulating lead ion transport and responding to heavy metal stress in plants. The research suggests that HrNRAMP1 may play a key role in regulating lead ion transport and responding to heavy metal stress within plants. This finding lays a foundation for further exploration into the molecular regulatory mechanisms by which sea buckthorn responds to heavy metal lead stress, as well as for genetic engineering efforts aimed at developing new sea buckthorn cultivars with reduced accumulation of heavy metal lead.