The detrimental effects of Huanglongbing (HLB) on citrus are well known and so is the need for effective methods to combat this disease. Solar thermotherapy (ST), one of the management methods to help alleviate some of the negative effects of HLB, is the process of heating trees to therapeutic temperatures by encompassing the tree within a plastic structure (Visqueen) to harness the sun's natural energy

In agriculture, LED light sources have increasingly replaced the standard luminescent lamps and have acquired an important role in plant micropropagation. We studied the effect of different light sources such as narrow-band LEDs (bright blue, blue, green, yellow, deep red, and red) and wide-band LEDs (cold white, white, warm white, full spectrum, and an artificial solar spectrum sun box constructed

Plant viruses are mainly transmitted by insect vectors in the non-persistent, semi-persistent, or persistent modes. In the non-persistent mode, plant viruses are retained in the stylets of their insect vectors. In the semi-persistent mode, plant viruses are carried to vector foreguts or salivary glands, but they cannot spread to salivary glands. In the persistent mode, plant viruses are retained in

Asian lotus (Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn.) is an aquatic plant with ornamental, cultural, economic, and ecological values. China has abundant germplasm resources of Asian lotus. However, in many areas, the wild Asian lotuses have been destroyed and the species is now facing extinction. In addition, the knowledge of the genetic diversity of the wild Asian lotus in China is poor. To identify and protect

The aim of this study was to characterize the changes in berry anatomy during the development of grape (Vitis vinifera L., and Vitis vinifera × Vitis labrusca) with different shapes. Paraffin sectioning was used to examine the structural parameters of the cells. The results revealed that, with the development of berries, the transverse and longitudinal diameters of the flesh cells gradually increased

Sucrose synthase (SUS, EC 2.4.1.13) is widely considered as a key enzyme involved in plant sucrose metabolism, and the gene family encoding different SUS isozymes has been identified and characterized in several plant species. However, to date scant information about the SUS genes is available in Litchi chinensis Sonn. Here, we identified five SUS genes in litchi. These LcSUSs shared high levels of

The homeodomain-leucine zipper (HD-Zip) family has been shown to perform a multitude of functions during plant development and stress responses; however, the family members and functions have not been identified in apple (Malus × domestica). In this study, 83 HD-Zips (MdHDZs) were identified in the apple genome. They were assembled into four subgroups according to the classification in Arabidopsis

DNA barcoding is a supplementary tool in plant systematics, extensively used to resolve the species level controversies. This paper details the identification of DNA barcodes for seven species of Momordica, using the chloroplast gene matK. Since the species M. cymbalaria has been confused as a member of the genus Luffa, 26 accessions of Momordica belonging to seven Indian species and two accessions

Loquat (Eriobotrya japonica Lindl.) is an evergreen fruit tree species of the Rosaceae, and its unique flowering time greatly hinders its production. To explore the artificial regulation of loquat flowering time, we removed the main inflorescence (by cutting it) to induce reflowering. For different loquat tree cultivars with different stages, the inflorescence was removed by cutting the main floral

Although open-central canopy (OCC) is popular in apple (Malus × domestica) orchards in Loess Plateau of China, its relevant photosynthetic mechanisms have not been elucidated. In this study, changes in photosynthetically active radiation (PAR), gas exchange, chlorophyll fluorescence quenching and fruit quality in apple trees were measured in OCC and compared with those in the conventional condensed

Abiotic stress has a serious effect on plant growth. The transcription factor DREB2A is a member of the AP2/ERF family, which is widely involved in abiotic stress response. However, the function of apple MdDREB2A has not been systematically investigated. In this study,MdDREB2A was isolated from the cultivar ‘Royal Gala’. The open reading frame of MdDREB2A was 1 197 bp in length and it encoded a protein

Microalgae, such as Chlorella vulgaris Beijerinck (green algae), are beneficial microscopic organisms that may help plants to improve nutrient uptake, growth, and abiotic tolerance to stressors. The current study was performed to investigate the effectiveness of algae (Chlorella vulgaris Beijerinck) foliar applications [1%, 3%, or 5% (v/v)] on mitigation of drought stress in broccoli plants subjected

Plant dormancy is essential for perennial plant survival. Different genotypes of Prunus mume, including Eumume group and Apricot Mei group, undergo leaf senescence and dormancy at different times. In order to verify the cold resistance of P. mume, freeze resistance evaluation was carried out. Our results showed that Apricot Mei group had a stronger freezing tolerance than Eumume group and that leaf

Rose is sensitive to high temperature which will make the rose go into a semi-dormancy state. Grafting is an excellent way to enhance rose heat tolerance. Here, heat-tolerant Rosa multiflora ‘Huanong Wuci 1’ (W) and heat-sensitive Rosa chinensis ‘Old Blush’ (X) were selected as experimental materials. The RNA-seq technique was used to investigate the transcriptomes of self-root grafting line (XX0)

Osmanthus fragrans is one of the top ten traditional flowers in China. It is divided into three different groups according to its color. α-Carotene and β-carotene are the main determinants to distinguish the color differences between three groups. However, the dominant genes and transcription factors involved in carotenoid metabolism remain unclear. CPTA treatment (0.7 mmol • L−1) remarkably promoted

The cadmium tolerance capacity of Canna orchioides was evaluated using glasshouse experiment to lay a theoretical foundation to broad applications of this species in cadmium (Cd) polluted areas. The plant growth, Cd absorption, and antioxidative enzyme activities of canna plants treated with different Cd concentrations (0, 100, and 200 mg • kg−1 per dry soil) for 30 days were investigated. The results

Chinese cabbage, belonging to Brassica rapa species, is an important vegetable in Eastern Asia. It is well known that Chinese cabbage is quite recalcitrant to genetic transformation and the transgenic frequency is generally low. The lack of an efficient and stable genetic transformation system for Chinese cabbage has largely limited related gene functional studies. In this study, we firstly developed

It is of great practical significance to study the development process of cut lily for regulating flowering and preservation. In this study, the developmental process of lily cut flower was explored from cellular, morphological, and physiological aspects. From a morphological aspect, the tepal edge grows faster than the midrib. The midrib groove of the flowering stage is wider than that of bud stage

Cysteine-rich polycomb-like (CPP) is a small gene family in plants, which plays key role in plant development and stress response. Although CPP transcription factors have been characterized in several other plant species, a genome-wide characterization of the CPP gene family has been absent in Camellia sinensis. In this study, we totally identified 7, 8, and 8 non-redundant CsCPP genes in three published

Orchids are horticultural plants with significant ornamental and economic value. Increasing market circulation and rising trade in orchids is forcing breeders to develop varieties with unique characteristics, including flower color, morphology, and resistance using a range of approaches, including traditional and molecular breeding. Advances in high-throughput technologies have generated extensive

Whole-genome shogun sequence (WGS) data generated by next-generation sequencing (NGS) platforms are a valuable resource for crop improvement. We produced 5–6 × WGS coverage of 44 Brassica oleracea breeding lines representing seven subspecies/morphotypes: cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, kailan, kale, Brussels sprout, and kohlrabi to systematically evaluate the nuclear and chloroplast (Cp) diversity

The G protein α-subunit, GPA1, is an integral component of several signaling pathways in plants, including response to abiotic stress. However, the molecular mechanism behind these processes remains largely unknown in the cucumber plant (Cucumis sativus L.). In order to further understand the role of CsGPA1 in cucumber under drought stress, changes in plant growth, physiological parameters, and gene

Most cherry orchards in China have low organic carbon content, though carbon is very important for plant growth. The changes in soil carbon and bacterial diversity were determined after different amounts of 12C-glucose were added to the rhizosphere of Cerasus sachalinensis. Soil bacteria diversity was measured using high throughput sequencing, and bacteria containing 13C-glucose were identified using

Rose (Rosa hybrida) is widely used for cut flowers and as garden plants. Stable and efficient transformation system is required for functional genomics of rose. Here, we established an efficient transformation method for rose using Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation of embryogenic callus. Expanding rose leaves were used as explants to induce somatic embryos, which were subjected to transformation

Downy mildew is a serious disease in cucumber production worldwide, which is caused by Pseudoperonospora cubensis (Berk. & Curt.) Rostov. Underlying the mechanism of cucumber response to downy mildew infection is important for breeding improvement and production; however, the research remains largely elusive. A comparative proteomic approach was used to reveal the differential accumulation of the proteomes

Citrus Huanglongbing, associated with Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus (Las), is the serious disease of citrus worldwide. Here, we compared differences between leaf and root responses in Wanjincheng Orange (Citrus sinensis Osbeck) to Las infection using leaf-disc grafting. Trees had no obvious symptoms in the first two months after grafting (MAG), but yellowing leaves, thickened midribs and decayed

Plants demonstrate dynamic changes in molecular structures under fluctuating light conditions. Accumulating evidence suggests that light plays a vital role in plant growth and morphogenesis. In particular, light has a role in the absorption and utilization of nutrients in plants. Despite significant progress in understanding the mechanism of nutrient acquisition and assimilation, how light affects

Huanglongbing (HLB), which is mainly associated with “Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus” (CLas), is currently threatening citrus production around the world. This destructive century-old disease results in callose deposition in phloem plasmodesmata and starch overaccumulation in leaf chloroplasts. Heat treatment with high humidity has proven to be effective in eliminating the CLas titers in potted

Kiwifruit (Actinidia deliciosa) ‘Bruno’ is prone to accumulate ethanol rapidly after respiratory climacteric during storage at ambient conditions without stresses, which causes quality deterioration of the fruit associated with alcohol off-flavor. For maintaining the postharvest quality of kiwifruit ‘Bruno’, the effects of 1.0 µL • L−1 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP) treatment on regulating the ethanol

Biofumigation is an environmentally friendly strategy used to control nematodes and plant diseases. The volatile oil of Zanthoxylum bungeanum has high insecticidal and antibacterial activity. However, it is not known if the seed of Z. bungeanum is a suitable material for biofumigation to control southern root-knot nematodes (SRKN) on tomato, and how it may regulate the soil bacterial community structure

Nitrogen deficiency is a major factor that affects the yield and quality of horticultural crops. Differentially expressed proteins were identified in cucumber fruit under nitrogen deficiency treatment, and are expected to be highly useful for dissecting carbon, nitrogen and ascorbate metabolism in cucumber and for improving nitrogen fertilizer utilization. Cucumber plants grown hydroponically in Hoagland

Stigma color plays an important role in pollination. In nature, melon (Cucumis melo L.) stigmas are either yellow or green; however, a review of the literature found no report on how stigma color affects pollination and fruit development in melon. Here, we used an F2 melon population derived from a cross between ‘MR-1’ (P1, with green stigmas) and ‘M1-32’ (P2, with yellow stigmas), and performed genetic

Rosa roxburghii Tratt. is a well-known commercial horticultural crop in China with nutritional and medicinal value. Wild germplasms of this species are mainly distributed in Southwest China but the population is decreasing due to continuous exploitation, habitat destruction, and fragmentation. Therefore, assessing the genetic diversity and phylogeography is essential for efficient conservation. Herein

Dioecy, the presence of male and female individual, has evolved independently from hermaphroditism in multiple flowering plant lineages. Spinach, an important leafy vegetable crop worldwide, is a dioecious species with an XY sex-determination system. Although some markers that are fully linked to male-determination locus were identified, the male-specific region (MSR) remained unclear. In this research

A homologous gene of strigolactones repressor protein gene SMXL7/D53, MdSMXL8.2 (GenBank accession No.: MD07G1222400), was cloned from ‘Royal Gala’ apple (Malus × domestica Borkh.) in this study. The sequence analysis revealed that the length of this gene was 3 243 bp, which encoded 1 080 amino acids, and had a protein molecular mass of ∼110 kD. The phylogenetic tree analysis indicated that the MdSMXL8

Peach (Prunus persica Batsch ‘Yuhualu’) fruit are sensitive to chilling injury (CI). Proline, polyamine (PA), and nitric oxide (NO) are important small regulators of various metabolic pathways under chilling stress that mitigate CI. Ethylene is known to promote senescence and CI, while 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP) is an antagonist that inhibits the effects of ethylene. However, how 1-MCP and ethylene

The red flesh in apple fruit is a desired trait by consumers and it is associated to the anthocyanin content, which is mainly controlled by MdMYB10 with a R6 promoter. In this study, a high-density linkage group was constructed using the ‘Fuji’ x ‘Red3’ population which contained homozygous alleles R1R1 and R6R6, respectively. The linkage group consists of 7 630 SNPs along 17 linkage groups, spanning

The interior atmosphere of storage facilities is very important for maintaining fruit quality and delaying senescence, so it's of significance to determine the volatile profiles in this environment for the postharvest industry. However, volatile profiles inside fruit storage facilities have been rarely reported. To study the volatile profiles of the atmosphere inside fruit storage facilities, a method

The MYB transcription factor is one of the largest gene families in plants, playing an important role in regulating plant growth, development, response to stress, senescence, and especially the anthocyanin biosynthesis. In this study, A total of 217 MYB genes, including 90 1R-MYBs, 124 R2R3-MYBs, and 3 R1R2R3-MYBs have been identified from the potato genome. The 1R-MYB and R2R3-MYB family members could

Carotenoids are a group of widely distributed natural pigments. They give many horticultural plants the bright red, orange, and yellow colors, as well as the aroma and flavor. Carotenoids enhance the health value and represent an essential quality trait of horticultural products. Significant efforts have been made to correlate specific carotenoid production with pathway gene expression. Some transcription

Fruit quality is the main factor determining market competitiveness; it represents the combination of fruit flavor, color, size, and the contents of aromatic and bioactive substances. Research on the genetic basis of fruit quality can provide new information about fruit biology, promote genomic-assisted breeding, and provide technological support for the regulation of fruit quality via habitat selection

The quality traits of horticultural crops, including the accumulation of nutrients and flavor substances, morphology, and texture, affect the palatability and nutritional value. For many years, efforts have been made to improve the quality of horticultural crops. The recent establishment of gene editing technology, with its potential applications in horticultural crops, provides a strategy for achieving

Carotenoids are indispensable for both human health and plant survival. Citrus, is one of the fruit crops richest in carotenoid compounds, with approximately 115 kinds of carotenoids; tremendous diversity in carotenoids composition and concentration exists among various species, showing different colors from nearly white to crimson. The carotenoid biosynthetic pathway and the key carotenogenic genes

Autumn leaf senescence and coloration is a complex process and a striking natural phenomenon. Here, through biology approach integrating transcriptomic analyses in Ginkgo biloba, we determined that the content of chlorophyll decreased during leaf senescence, while carotenoid components increased until late October in the turning stage (TS) and then decreased in the yellow leaf stage (YS). Simultaneously

Allopolyploid Brassica juncea is particularly enriched in sinigrin, a kind of 3C aliphatic glucosinolates (GSLs), giving rise to characteristic taste after picking. However, the molecular mechanism underlying 3C aliphatic GSLs biosynthesis in this species remains unknown. In this study, we genome-widely identified GSLs metabolic genes, indicating different evolutionary rate of GSLs metabolic genes

The speed of flower opening is closely related to their ornamental period. Ethylene functions as a negative regulator involved in the regulation of the petal expansion process. In this study, we isolated a NF-YC transcription factor gene, RhNF-YC9, from rose petals. RhNF-YC9 expression was induced at the early stages of flower opening but was inhibited by ethylene treatment. Silencing RhNF-YC9 decreased

Previous studies have shown that high light intensity can induce anthocyanin synthesis (AS) in petunia plants. To identify which kind of light quality plays a role in inducing such metabolic process, and what transcripts participate in controlling it, we carried out whole-transcriptome sequencing and analysis of petunia petals treated with different light-quality conditions. Among the red and white

Eugenol is a natural phenolic compound known for its health-promoting properties and its ability to add a floral scent to tea plants. Plant eugenol glycosides have been identified and shown to make important contributions to fruit floral quality. However, the details of their biosynthesis and metabolism in tea plants are still unknown. Here, eugenol glucoside was unambiguously identified as a native

Brassica taxa occur naturally and are also cultivated in Turkey. Due to their economic importance, several cultivars have been extensively cultivated in certain regions of the country. Alongside extensive cultivation for vegetable production of the other species of the genus, Brassica juncea has very limited cultivation. Five native species of Brassica are known from restricted locations in Turkey

The chestnuts genus (Castanea spp.) is comprised of economically important trees native to the Northern hemisphere that are used as food and hardwood timber. Here, a very efficient method for micropropagation of European × Japanese chestnut hybrids (Castanea sativa × C. crenata) is described. Woody Plant Medium was used as the basal medium. In vitro shoots of four rootstock cultivars were micropropagated

Late embryogenesis abundant (LEA) proteins play an important role in plant growth and development, as well as in the plant response to various abiotic stresses. In this study, CsLEA1, a novel gene encoding a LEA_3 subfamily protein, was successfully cloned from a tea plant [Camellia sinensis (L.) O. Kuntze]. Bioinformatics analysis and prokaryotic expression assays showed that CsLEA1 is a typical hydrophilic

Phenomics is a new branch of science that provides high-throughput quantification of plant and animal traits at systems level. The last decade has witnessed great successes in high-throughput phenotyping of numerous morphological traits, yet major challenges still exist in precise phenotyping of physiological traits such as transpiration and photosynthesis. Due to the highly dynamic nature of physiological

Stone cells have been described to substantially influence pear fruit quality, as lignin and cellulose are the main components of stone cells. However, there are limited studies on the relationship between the variation and molecular basis of stone cells, lignin and cellulose content among different pear varieties. Here, to reveal the variation of stone cell content within different cultivated species

To understand the functional identification of large-scale genomic sequences in Forsythia, tobacco rattle virus (TRV)-mediated virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS), suitable for the plant, was explored in this study. The results showed that the TRV-mediated VIGS system could be successfully used in Forsythia for silencing the reporter gene FsPDS (Forsythia phytoene desaturase) using stem infiltration

Plants harbor diverse fungal communities both on their surfaces (epiphytic) and inside of plant tissues (endophytic), and these fungi play important roles in plant health and vigor. However, comparisons of epiphytes and endophytes have rarely been performed. In this study, the soil, epiphytic and endophytic fungal assemblages of greenhouse-grown tomato plants were extensively examined and compared

Anthocyanin is abundant in a few vegetables, including eggplant. It protects plants from abiotic stress and benefits human health, making the research of anthocyanin biosynthesis increasingly important. Flowering time is an important reference for judging reproduction and adaptability, which can guide plant production. In this study, SmbHLH13 from eggplant was identified. Yeast one-hybrid and dual-luciferase

Apiaceae is a major family from Apiales and includes many important vegetable and medicinal crops. Heat shock transcription factors (Hsf) play important roles in heat tolerance during plant development. Here, we conducted systematic analyses of the Hsf gene family in three Apiaceae species, including 17 Apium graveolens (celery), 32 Coriandrum sativum (coriander), and 14 Daucus carota (carrot). A total

The smut Ustilago esculenta is an endophytic fungus that invades Zizania latifolia (Jiaobai) and plays an important role in inducing the host stem to form a swollen gall. The aims of this study were to investigate isolation, identification and inoculation methods of U. esculenta from Jiaobai. The spore suspension culturing method was the best method of isolating U. esculenta, and yeast-like fungal

Henosepilachna vigintioctopunctata is an emerging horticultural pest of Solanaceae plants in Asia. Here, we employed transcriptome sequencing of three female and three male H. vigintioctopunctata libraries to identify sex-related genes. We recorded 281 599 294 bp of clean reads, and de novo assembly generated 85 206 unigenes, with N50 of 1 311 bp and average length of 763 bp. We found 5 002 genes highly

Virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS) is a genetic tool used to assess gene function. Tobacco rattle virus (TRV) is a VIGS vector commonly used to induce endogenous gene silencing in plants. However, there is no VIGS system established for Centaurea spp. We evaluated the effectiveness of a TRV-based VIGS system using phytoene desaturase (PDS) as a reporter gene in Centaurea cyanus. Three methods including