Wide-precision sowing with an appropriate basal-to-topdressing N ratio increases winter wheat yield and N use efficiency
Available online 13 October 2026
Wide-precision sowing (WS) improves winter wheat canopy structure and enlarges the productive population, yet whether these changes increase crop dependence on sustained post-anthesis N supply and thereby...
Small phytopeptides: rising stars in broad-spectrum plant defense and sustainable crop protection
Available online 13 October 2026
Plants have developed intricate local, systemic, and induced immune systems for defense against various pathogens, providing multiple strategies for crop protection. Small plant-derived peptides (phytopeptides)...
CRISPR/Cas9 editing of the soybean DUF-domain gene PH19 decreases plant height without yield loss
Available online 13 October 2026
In grain crops, moderate decreases in plant height due to semi-dwarf mutations reduce lodging and improve yield potential; however, soybean (Glycine max) has not undergone the same ‘semi-dwarf’ Green...
Spatial multi-omics reveals compartment-specific lipid remodeling in high-oleic rice grains
Available online 13 October 2026
Rice bran oil (RBO) is valued for its health-promoting properties, yet the spatial distribution and molecular remodeling of grain lipid accumulation during seed development remain poorly understood....
Stable QTNs for soybean seed protein content support genomic selection and simulation-based molecular breeding
Available online 13 October 2026
Soybean (Glycine max [L.] Merr.) is an important source of plant-based protein, making the enhancement of its seed protein content (PC) a central objective for breeders. This study analyzed a collection...
Genetic dissection of soil acidity tolerance in wheat by combining genome-wide association study and linkage mapping
Available online 4 October 2026
Low pH stress is a major constraint to wheat production in China, severely impacting wheat yield and quality. However, the genetic basis of low pH tolerance remains unclear. We evaluated seven seedling...
Optimizing maize doubled-haploid production by genomic prediction of haploid induction and chromosome doubling
Available online 4 October 2026
Doubled haploid (DH) technology accelerates maize inbred line development, yet DH production efficiency varies widely across genetic backgrounds. This study aimed to evaluate genomic prediction (GP)...
Characterization of a new stripe rust resistance gene YrA44 in wheat-Thinopyrum ponticum translocation lines
Available online 3 October 2026
Stripe rust, caused by Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici (Pst), is a devastating disease of wheat worldwide. Thinopyrum ponticum (Podp.) Barkworth & D.R. Dewey, a wild relative of wheat, harbors multiple...
Integrated multi-omics reveal mechanisms of awn variation in forage oats (Avena sativa)
Available online 26 September 2026
Awns contribute to seed dispersal, grain yield, and drought tolerance, but their mechanisms in oats remain unclear. Using an awned mutant generated from cultivar Everleaf by sodium azide mutagenesis,...
UAV-based high-throughput phenotyping of plant nitrogen concentration across soybean genotypes and its utility in screening high-yield varieties
Available online 26 September 2026
The objective of this study was to evaluate the potential for identifying high-yield soybean varieties by estimating plant nitrogen concentration (PNC) with unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) remote sensing....
The value of training population optimization strategies for genomic prediction in the era of large integrated data
Available online 26 September 2026
This study aimed to identify a training population optimization (TPO) strategy that maximizes genomic prediction ability using an independent, representative elite test set and a large integrated training...
Integrating reduced nitrogen fertilization with a nitrification inhibitor under drip fertigation increases maize nitrogen use efficiency while reducing carbon footprint
Available online 26 September 2026
This study aimed to determine whether reduced N application combined with the nitrification inhibitor dicyandiamide (DCD) could maintain maize yield, increase nitrogen use efficiency (NUE), and reduce...
OsbZIP65 enhances cold tolerance in rice by regulating ROS scavenging and carbohydrate metabolism
Available online 24 September 2026
Cold stress limits rice productivity, yet how transcriptional regulation coordinates antioxidant defense and carbohydrate adjustment remains poorly understood. Here, we identified Group S bZIP transcription...
Plants get sunburned too: A protein-based shade net protects chloroplasts against sunlight
Available online 18 September 2026
SiNAC2 accelerates leaf senescence and modulates yield traits in Setaria italica by activating SiJAR1-mediated jasmonate signaling
Available online 17 September 2026
The objective of this study was to identify the regulatory mechanisms underlying leaf senescence in foxtail millet (Setaria italica). We identified and functionally characterized a NAC transcription...
OsNAC079 confers salt tolerance in rice by activating the sodium transporter OsHKT1;5
Available online 17 September 2026
The objective of this study was to identify the transcriptional regulatory mechanisms governing the expression of OsHKT1;5, a sodium transporter determining sodium homeostasis and salt tolerance in...
Optimizing N rates enhanced crop yields and mitigated N2O emissions in a peanut–wheat cropping system in the North China Plain
Available online 17 September 2026
Optimal nitrogen (N) inputs are critical for reconciling crop yields with greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation in agroecosystems. The peanut-wheat cropping system has been shown to reduce synthetic N inputs...
Common vetch intercropping increases high-density oat productivity through improved canopy light–nitrogen matching and optimized photosynthetic nitrogen partitioning
Available online 16 September 2026
The objective of this study was to identify the mechanism by which oat–common vetch intercropping enhances yield performance under high planting density. In a field experiment comparing oat–common vetch...
Wheat breeding for climate resilience: Insights from the 4th International Wheat Congress
Available online 16 September 2026
Resistance breeding in elite hybrid rice by EBE-editing for bacterial blight
Available online 16 September 2026
Bacterial blight (BB), caused by Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae (Xoo), is devastative to hybrid rice. Engineering effector-binding elements (EBEs) in susceptibility gene promoters confers resistance;...
Soybean productivity and profitability under optimized planting geometry and system of crop intensification in the Indo-Gangetic Plains
Available online 16 September 2026
Optimizing planting configuration and management is critical for improving soybean productivity under the System of Crop Intensification (SCI), yet information on suitable planting arrangements and...
Application of coupling coordination evaluation for light–water utilization system in summer maize
Available online 15 September 2026
The objective of this study was to determine how soil water and light utilization coordinate to influence summer maize yield and water productivity. In a four-year field experiment with four cultivars,...
Phosphate starvation signaling restricts leaf angle in rice by PHR2-mediated repression of brassinosteroid biosynthesis
Available online 15 September 2026
Inorganic phosphate (Pi) deficiency induces decreased leaf angle in rice as an adaptive strategy, but the underlying molecular mechanism remains unclear. Here, we demonstrate that Pi-starvation-induced...
ZmARR2 promotes salt tolerance in maize through a redox-related pathway
Available online 13 September 2026
Soil salinization severely limits crop productivity by disrupting ionic and redox homeostasis. Cytokinin signaling mediated by type-B Arabidopsis response regulators (B-ARRs) has been implicated in...
Going (pea)nuts: Peanut genomics from variation maps, T2T genomes to breeding
Available online 12 September 2026
