Plant Biology

Catch & Release – rapid cost-effective protein purification from plants using a DIY GFP-Trap-protease approach

1. Sebastian Schwartz
2. Carina Engstler
3. Susanne Mühlbauer
4. Eduard Windenbach
5. Tobias Wunder
6. Hans-Henning Kunz
7. Benjamin Brandt

Reviewed by Arcadia Science

Fifteenth century CE Bolivian maize reveals genetic affinities with ancient Peruvian maize

1. Huan Chen
2. Amy Baetsen-Young
3. Addie Thompson
4. Brad Day
5. Thelma Madzima
6. Sally Wasef
7. Claudia Rivera Casanovas
8. William Lovis
9. Gabriel Wrobel

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This useful study attempts to place an ancient maize sample from Bolivia, dated to the end of the Incan empire, in genetic and geographical context. The analyses show that this sample is most closely related to ancient Peruvian maize, but the data remain inadequate to determine the direction of dispersal and the extent of Inca influence over the genetic make up of the analyzed sample. There are additional deficiencies in the statistical analyses and selection inferences. The topic of the study would appeal to researchers studying maize dispersal and adaptation.

Reviewed by eLife

The reproductive microbiome inhibits pollen germination in milkweed

1. Harmony J. Dalgleish
2. Joshua R. Puzey
3. Katie Barlow
4. Olivia Cunningham
5. Elizabeth M. Davies
6. Hannah Machiorlete
7. Geneva Waynick
8. Kurt E. Williamson

Reviewed by Arcadia Science

Companion cells with high florigen production express other small proteins and reveal a nitrogen-sensitive FT repressor

1. Hiroshi Takagi
2. Shogo Ito
3. Jae Sung Shim
4. Akane Kubota
5. Andrew K Hempton
6. Nayoung Lee
7. Takamasa Suzuki
8. Jared S Wong
9. Chansie Yang
10. Christine T Nolan
11. Kerry L Bubb
12. Cristina M Alexandre
13. Daisuke Kurihara
14. Yoshikatsu Sato
15. Yasuomi Tada
16. Takatoshi Kiba
17. Jose L Pruneda-Paz
18. Christine Quietsch
19. Josh T Cuperus
20. Takato Imaizumi

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This fundamental study uncovers the unique molecular features of Arabidopsis phloem companion cells that highly express FLOWERING LOCUS T (FT). These FT-expressing cells constitute a distinct subpopulation marked by elevated ATP biosynthesis and co-expression of small mobile proteins such as FLP1 and BFT, highlighting a fine balance between florigen and anti-florigen signals. Motif analyses and transgenic studies further identify NIGT1 transcription factors as direct, nitrogen-inducible repressors of FT, providing a mechanism for delayed flowering under nitrogen-rich conditions. Together, the compelling findings show that florigen-producing companion cells integrate energy metabolism, systemic protein signals, and nutrient-responsive repression to fine-tune the seasonal and nutritional regulation of flowering.

Reviewed by eLife

Single-nucleus transcriptome analyses uncover a dynamic transcriptional landscape of soybean roots in response to soybean cyst nematode infection

1. Pan-Pan Bai
2. Xin-Ye Jia
3. Luying Chen
4. Yatao Han
5. Shaojie Han
6. Lin Weng
7. Xianzhong Feng

Reviewed by PREreview

A plant immune receptor mediates tritrophic interactions by linking caterpillar detection to predator recruitment

1. Natalia Guayazán Palacios
2. Patrick Grof-Tisza
3. Brian Behnken
4. Carla Marques Arce
5. Di Wu
6. Antonio F. Chaparro
7. Eric A. Schmelz
8. Ted C.J. Turlings
9. Betty Benrey
10. Adam D. Steinbrenner

Reviewed by PREreview

The nucleus follows an internal cellular scale during polarized root hair cell development

1. Jessica M. Orr
2. M. Arif Ashraf

Reviewed by preLights

Short heat shock factor A2 regulates heat resistance and growth balance in Arabidopsis

1. Wanxia Chen
2. Jiaqi Zhao
3. Zhanxia Tao
4. Shan Zhang
5. Xiujuan Bei
6. Wen Lu
7. Xiaoting Qi

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  The paper reports valuable findings about the mechanism of regulation of the heat shock response in plants that acts as a brake to prevent hyperactivation of the stress response, which have theoretical or practical implications for a subfield. The study presented by the authors provides solid methods, data, and analysis that broadly support the claims. This report presents helpful information regarding new spliced HSFs forms in Arabidopsis that highlights key information in the understanding of heat stress and plant growth.

Reviewed by eLife

An increase of NPY1 expression leads to inhibitory phosphorylation of PIN-FORMED (PIN) proteins and suppression of pinoid (pid) null mutants

1. Michael Mudgett
2. Zhouxin Shen
3. Ruofan Kang
4. Xinhua Dai
5. Steve Briggs
6. Yunde Zhao

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This valuable study concerns a highly interesting and biologically relevant topic, the regulation of the PIN auxin transporter, which is of broad interest to the plant biology community. The authors propose NPY1 to act downstream of PID in auxin-mediated development by modulating PIN phosphorylation, which, if experimentally solidified, would expand our understanding of PIN regulation. While the genetic evidence is solid, the mechanistic role of NPY1 and the functional relevance of phosphorylated PIN residues are still uncertain. There are also concerns regarding experimental rigor and methodological transparency.

Reviewed by eLife

Rice stripe virus utilizes an Laodelphax striatellus salivary carbonic anhydrase to facilitate plant infection by direct molecular interaction

1. Jing Zhao
2. Xiangyi Meng
3. Jie Yang
4. Rongxiang Fang
5. Yan Huo
6. Lili Zhang

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This study presents a useful set of experiments to explore how a salivary protein might facilitate planthopper-transmitted rice stripe virus infection by interfering with callose deposition and if fully validated, these findings would significantly advance our understanding of tripartite virus-vector-plant interactions and could be of broad interest to plant science research. The authors provide additional data supporting protein-protein interactions and clarify the transient presence of LssaCA in plants. However, the mechanistic framework remains incomplete, particularly regarding the temporal dynamics of callose function and the sustained effect of LssaCA after virus inoculation. Evidence for the tripartite interaction's functional relevance is still limited, and several critical phenotypic and biochemical details require further substantiation.

Reviewed by eLife