Phosphorus (P) is one of the essential macronutrients for plant growth and development. Plants absorb phosphorus from the soil mainly in the form of inorganic phosphate (Pi). However, Pi in the soil is easily fixed, and its availability is low. Therefore, it is of great significance to study the molecular mechanisms of Pi starvation response (PSR) for improving the effective utilization of P in crops. In the past 20 years, great progress has been made in the study of the regulatory mechanisms of plant responses to Pi deficiency. Here, we systematically reviewed the research progress achieved in recent years both domestically and internationally, including local PSR signaling-mediated alteration of root morphogenesis, the PHR (PHOSPHATE STARVATION RESPONSE)-SPX (SYG1/Pho81/XPR1)-centered systemic PSR signaling network, the molecular mechanism of the symbiosis of rice arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi under Pi stress conditions, the transportation and allocation of Pi from rhizospheres to shoots, and the relocation and reuse of Pi from leaves to seeds. Finally, we discussed the future research priorities on the molecular mechanisms of PSR. This review summarizes current results and looks forward to future research directions to facilitate the study of PSR in plants and the improvements of Pi utilization efficiency in crops.

Green agriculture is a new model of modern agricultural development. The level of agricultural green development reflects the comprehensive strength of modern agriculture. By evaluating the level of agricultural green development in Henan Province, it can provide guidance for building a strong province of modern agriculture. The TOPSIS model based on the entropy-weighted method was used to construct a comprehensive evaluation index for agricultural green development, which included 14 indexes from the four dimensions of resource conservation, environmental friendliness, ecological conservation, and quality and efficiency. The dynamic changes of agricultural green development level were analyzed in Henan Province from 2007 to 2021, as well as the level of agricultural green development (based on the average values of 2019, 2020, and 2021) in its 18 jurisdiction cities. The results indicated that the comprehensive evaluation index of agricultural green development in Henan Province showed a fluctuating upward trend, but the index was still at a low level. In addition, the levels of agricultural green development among different cities in Henan Province were quite different, and those in the western regions were significantly lower than those in the other regions. According to the cluster analysis results, different cities in Henan Province could be divided into three types: zone Ⅰ (modern agricultural regions), zone Ⅱ (traditional agricultural regions), and zone Ⅲ (urban agricultural development regions). In summary, all regions should be based on local resource endowments and in response to the needs of national development strategies, adapt to local conditions, focus on breaking through weak links, and further promote the process of agricultural green development in Henan Province.

With the continuous advancement of ecological and green agricultural construction, environmentally friendly and low-toxicity biopesticides have been widely developed and utilized. This study investigated the control efficiencies of different active ingredient dosages of avermectin and jinggangmycin (A&J) mixture on major rice diseases and pests via both laboratory tests and field tests. The results revealed significant synergistic effects of the A&J mixture on killing Rhizoctonia solani Kühn, rice planthoppers (Sogatella furcifera and Nilaparvata lugens), Chilo suppressalis, Tryporyza incertulas and Nephotettix bipunctatus. This synergism can partially neutralize the resistance of pathogenic fungus and pests, thereby prolonging the duration of pesticide use. The toxic effects of the A&J mixture on Cnaphalocrocis medinalis and Naranga aenescens were found to be similar to those of avermectin alone. Therefore, the A&J mixture has the potential to improve the prevention and control capacities to major rice diseases and pests, and it is a green prevention and control method that is worthy of widespread promotion and application.

Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is one of the most widely cultivated cereal crops in the world and plays a vital role in global food security. Aging is a natural phenomenon that occurs during the storage of rice grains and the mechanisms are still not completely understood. During the storage of rice, the physicochemical properties of sensory, cooking and gelatinization, and starch structure and function change to different degrees. These changes are closely related to storage time and temperature and have irreversible impacts on rice quality. While the changes in physicochemical properties caused by rice aging have been intensively investigated, few studies have focused on changes in starch fine structure following storage. This review examined the types and methods of artificial aging as well as their extensive effects on physicochemical properties and changes in starch fine structure, which provides a theoretical basis for further elucidation of rice aging mechanisms.

Anthocyanidins and proanthocyanidins have important health benefits for the human body. Anthocyanidins are present mainly as glycosylated or acetylated anthocyanins in nature, and proanthocyanidins exist in the form of polymers, with a wide variety of types and antioxidant properties. Pigmented rice, especially black rice, contains abundant anthocyanidins and proanthocyanidins, and it is becoming favorable. Here, we reviewed the research progress on anthocyanidins and proanthocyanidins in rice, emphasizing their molecular genetic mechanisms, isolation, purification, and detection methods, as well as their effects on starch physicochemical and digestive properties. Furthermore, we proposed several perspectives for future studies on pigmented rice, providing alternative considerations for further development, utilization and breeding of pigmented rice.

Nanxun District of Huzhou City in Zhejiang Province is one of the most complete and largest areas of mulberry-dykes and fish-ponds, and the mulberry-dyke and fish-pond system in this area has been listed in the globally important agricultural heritage systems. With the development of the social economy, the change of consumer demand and the modernization of agricultural production, the production modes, economies and service values of mulberry-dyke and fish-pond system have undergone great changes. Using remote sensing images, socio-economic data and other data, we analyzed the spatio-temporal pattern evolution and driving factors of mulberry-dykes and fish-ponds in Nanxun District from 1975 to 2019. The results were as follows: 1) In terms of scale changes, fish ponds expanded rapidly; mulberry fields decreased significantly; paddy fields shrank dramatically; the scale of mulberry-dykes and fish-ponds decreased significantly; and the proportion of dyke-pond decreased seriously. In terms of morphological changes, fish ponds showed a trend of agglomeration and scaling, while mulberry fields and paddy fields showed a trend of fragmentation, and fish ponds gradually separated from the traditional mulberry-dyke and fish-pond system layout characteristics and existed independently. 2) From 2012 to 2019, the economic benefits of fish pond farming were much greater than those of silkworm breeding and rice planting, which was the main driving force leading to the obvious shrinkage of mulberry fields and paddy fields and the large-scale expansion of fish ponds. Therefore, it is necessary to further strengthen the protection and inheritance of the mulberry-dyke and fish-pond system through the establishment of globally important agricultural heritage systems, and it is also an important measure to support sustainable agricultural development in Nanxun District of Huzhou City.

Urban vegetation is an important part of the urban environment, and remote sensing classification of urban vegetation is an important way to monitor and analyze urban green space. By sorting the research progress of remote sensing classification of urban vegetation at home and abroad, we started from two aspects of remote sensing data sources and classification methods, and analyzed the current problems and development trends in this field, in order to provide references for urban green space research. First, the applications of optical data, light detection and ranging (LiDAR) data and ground sensing data in the remote sensing classification of urban vegetation were summarized, and the advantages and disadvantages of different data sources were analyzed in depth. Second, the characteristics of classification methods applied in the remote sensing classification of urban vegetation were summarized through the study of three classification methods, including threshold segmentation, machine learning, and deep learning. Finally, the existing problems and future development directions in the remote sensing classification of urban vegetation were proposed.

γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA), as a four-carbon and non-protein amino acid, is one of the important bioactive components in germinated brown rice. In this paper, the recent researches on GABA in germinated brown rice were summarized. It was found that GABA was mainly located in the rice germ, and the GABA content exhibited significant genetic diversity. The GABA content of indica rice was generally higher than that of japonica rice. Soaking conditions such as soaking temperature, soaking time and soaking method significantly affected GABA production in germinated brown rice. Meanwhile, the accumulation rate and amount of GABA were closely related to germination conditions such as germination temperature, germination time and germination method. In addition, abiotic stress treatments such as adversity stress, ultrasonic treatment and pulsed light irradiation could effectively promote GABA accumulation in germinated brown rice. The GABA branch and polyamine degradation pathway are the main biosynthesis and metabolic pathways of GABA in germinated brown rice, which are regulated by several key enzymes, such as glutamic acid decarboxylase, GABA transaminase and succinic semialdehyde dehydrogenase. The potential biological functions of GABA in germinated brown rice and the development and application of functional foods such as germinated brown rice staple foods and beverages rich in GABA were discussed, and the future work on GABA in germinated brown rice was also prospected. This paper provides a theoretical reference for the breeding of GABA-enriched rice and the development of nutritional foods of GABA-enriched germinated brown rice.

With the development of large-scale and intensive pig farming, production management models such as weaning, mixing groups, and restrictive barriers have induced fear, anxiety, depression, and other stress responses in pig herds, significantly impacting production efficiency. Therefore, studying the genetic basis of pig mental health traits and conducting genetic improvement have significant implications for enhancing the production efficiency and economic benefits of the pig farming industry. This paper focused primarily on three aspects: stress responses and behavioral manifestations of pigs, exploration of the genetic basis of pig mental health traits, and the role of pigs as model animals for mental health research in medicine. This review summarized the potential stress responses and behavioral issues that may arise in pigs under intensive production management, evaluated indicators and methods for assessing pig mental health, and discussed genes reported to be associated with pig behaviors and stress responses. The current understanding of the genetic basis of pig mental health traits remains limited and requires further in-depth research for advancements in this field. Moreover, pigs as model animals hold significant potential for research into mental illnesses. In the future, leveraging pigs as a model system can facilitate a deeper exploration on the pathogenesis and treatment methods of human mental disorders.

Lipids, as essential nutrients in rice seeds, are of significant importance. Enhancing the oil content in rice seeds and optimizing its beneficial fatty acids and antioxidant substances are current trends in rice quality breeding. In this study, we reviewed the principal constituents and functions of rice oil, oil synthesis and regulatory pathways, regulatory genes and networks of rice oil, and genetic improvement of rice oil. The aims are to deepen the understanding of rice oil biosynthesis and provide new insights and directions for creating high-oil and high-quality rice germplasm resources in the future.

The infection of Nicotiana tabacum with potato virus Y (PVY) can cause tobacco vein disease, leading to a decrease in the tobacco leaf quality. The broad complex, tramtrack, and bric-à-brac/pox virus and zinc finger (BTB/POZ) family exists widely in plants and animals. It plays a very important role in various stages of plant growth and development. In this study, 90 proteins in the BTB/POZ family of N. tabacum were identified, corresponding to 71 genes. Among these protein sequences, nine conserved motifs were identified, and the members of the BTB/POZ family were divided into six subfamilies according to the order of their appearance. Domain analysis showed that the domains of members of the same subfamily in BTB/POZ are consistent. The three-dimensional (3D) conformation of the BTB/POZ protein was predicted based on the amino acid sequence. All the members of the subfamily are mainly structured with α helixes, and the 3D conformations of members of the same subfamily are similar. Analysis of the BTB/POZ family gene expression patterns of N. tabacum K326 and mutant M867 (anti-PVY) showed that the expression levels of NtBTB2K, NtBTB2L, NtBTB2M and NtBTB6E increased significantly after inoculation with PVY, which may be related to the strong resistance of N. tabacum M867 to PVY. Cis-acting element analysis showed that the 2 000 bp upstream region of NtBTB2K, NtBTB2L, NtBTB2M and NtBTB6E contained several stress responsive elements, including TCA-element and MYB-binding site, which may be related to the upregulated expression of these genes. This study provides a theoretical basis for the study of BTB/POZ protein function, and provides a reference for disease resistance of tobacco breeding.

Data assimilation system integrates the advantages of remote sensing data and crop growth models, providing a powerful means for real-time monitoring of agricultural production conditions. This paper, built upon a brief introduction to remote sensing methods for crop yield estimation, specifically focused on four aspects: the development of data assimilation algorithms, the application potential of multi-source remote sensing data for data assimilation, the uncertainty of data assimilation system, and the scale effects of data assimilation system. In addition, to address the current state of agricultural applications, future efforts should thoroughly explore the advantages of multi-source remote sensing data, multi-crop growth model ensembles, and data algorithms. The ultimate goal is to establish a crop yield estimation model centered around mechanism model, thereby providing robust data and technical support for the formulation of sound field management strategies, the planning of cereal industry layouts, and the establishment of import and export trade policies.

The metabolism of rice endosperm depends on the precise regulation of several post-translational modification (PTM)-based signaling networks, including phosphorylation and ubiquitination modifications. This study, integrating analysis of proteins from phosphoproteome and ubiquitinated proteome, identified 143 proteins with both phosphorylated and ubiquitinated sites, providing a basis for understanding the crosstalk mechanism between phosphorylation and ubiquitination modifications in rice endosperm. On the one hand, phosphorylation modification of key proteins involved in the ubiquitin-proteasome system contributed to the regulation of ubiquitination modification; on the other hand, ubiquitination modification of protein kinases and phosphatases might affect the phosphorylated signaling network. Under high temperature stress, phosphorylation and ubiquitination modifications jointly regulated the synthesis pathway of phenolic compounds, ultimately affecting the ability of phenolic compounds to scavenge reactive oxygen species and plant resistance to stress. Several enzymes related to starch metabolism possessed both phosphorylation and ubiquitination modifications, and 18 pairs of sites with different modification types appeared adjacent to the same protein, revealing the crosstalk mechanism between different modifications and the synergistic regulation of starch metabolism by phosphorylation and ubiquitination modifications under high temperature stress.

Over a long period of evolution, plant pathogenic fungi have developed a wide range of intricate and sophisticated strategies to invade their host plants, and the precise regulation of gene expression is necessary for interactions between plants and these pathogens. Epigenetic regulation refers to the process of altering DNA and proteins on chromosomes through chemical modifications, thereby regulating gene expression. These epigenetic regulations include DNA methylation, histone methylation, histone acetylation, and chromatin remodeling. Increasing evidence suggests that epigenetic regulation plays a crucial role in transcriptional reprogramming of plant pathogenic fungal genes, which affects their development, environmental stress response, biosynthesis of secondary metabolites and pathogenicity. This paper reviewed the recent advancements in epigenetic regulators, including histone modification and chromatin remodeling, and their roles in the development and pathogenicity of plant pathogenic fungi and offered insights into the current research prospects to lay a solid theoretical foundation for future disease control research.

Peroxisomes are multifunctional organelles that are ubiquitous in eukaryotes. In plants, peroxisomes have very diverse functions in primary and secondary metabolisms and play important roles in plant growth and development as well as in stress response. Therefore, the study of plant peroxisomes is of great significance for improving crop yield, quality and stress resistance. The metabolic functions of peroxisomes depend on peroxisome-localized proteins, including various enzymes and membrane proteins responsible for substance transport; thus revealing the protein composition of peroxisomes is beneficial for understanding their metabolic functions. This paper summarized the main metabolic functions of plant peroxisomes and the proteomic studies of plant peroxisomes. Furthermore, we concluded with an outlook on future research directions related to plant peroxisomes and their relationship with agriculture.

Ecological greenhouse agriculture refers to an ecological farming model that utilizes clean, green, and healthy production methods for greenhouse planting and breeding. Its goal is to improve resource use efficiency, enhance agricultural product yield and quality, and promote environmental benefits. In China, there are two primary categories of ecological greenhouse agriculture (key promotion by the Ministry of Agriculture in 2002). The first category is the “four-in-one” ecological model combining crop planting, animal breeding, and biogas production within a greenhouse. It has evolved from individual family greenhouse facilities to village-based ecological greenhouse clusters, and then to industrialized biogas production from large-scale piggery, where pig manure is converted into biogas and integrated into the power grid. Biogas slurry is transported through pipelines to farmland, reducing the use of chemical fertilizers and improving soil quality. The system structure configuration, supporting technologies and equipments for planting and breeding are continuously being developed and improved. The second category is the ecological greenhouse agriculture model that adopts comprehensive ecological agricultural technologies. These technologies include various types of vertical and three-dimensional cultivation methods to increase land resource use efficiency, rotational cultivation technologies to reduce continuous cropping obstacles and pesticide usage in greenhouse vegetable production, healthy cultivation technologies involving the proper application of organic fertilizers to improve soil properties or the use of fermented agricultural and forestry wastes as organic substrate to provide nutrients to crops, ecological control technologies to reduce the occurrence of diseases, pests and weeds, such as insect-proof net covering, color board and light trap-killing, high-temperature sealing, steam disinfection, colored film covering soils, and biological control of natural enemy insects. It is expected that, through further research on related supporting equipments and technologies, the informatization and automation levels of ecological greenhouse agriculture can be improved, and thereby the sustainable development goal of greenhouse agriculture will be reached.

Taking indica rice as the research object, solid phase micro-extraction (SPME) and solvent-assisted flavor evaporation (SAFE) coupled with gas chromatography-olfactory-mass spectrometry (GC-O-MS) were applied to identify and characterize the aroma compounds in cooked rice. The key aroma components of cooked rice were further identified through quantitative analysis, odor activity value (OAV), and aroma recombination and omission experiments. The results showed that a total of 49 aroma compounds were identified, among which 2-methylbutanal, hexanal, 2-pentylfuran, nonanal, 1-octen-3-ol, (E)-2-nonenal, (E)-2-decenal, acetoin, 2(5H)-furanone, and 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline were screened out as the key aroma compounds. Seven sensory characteristics of cooked rice were evaluated using sensory quantitative descriptive analysis, namely cooked grain, nutty, grassy, caramel, sweet, fruity, and floral aromas. Partial least squares regression (PLSR) analysis showed that 2-methylbutanal, 2-pentylfuran, and 2(5H)-furanone were related to the formation of nutty and sweet sensory attributes; hexanal, (E)-2-nonenal, (E)-2-decenal, 2-methoxy-4-vinylphenol and indole were related to grassy and floral aromas; nonanal and decanal were related to fruity aroma; and 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline was significantly correlated with caramel aroma. Cooked grain aroma, an important sensory attribute of cooked rice, had a significantly positive correlation with various aroma compounds. This study provides a scientific basis for the regulation of cooked rice flavor and the construction of a sensory quality evaluation system.

Soil carbon is an important component of the terrestrial carbon pool, and carbon dynamic balance of input and output, mineralization and immobilization are critical factors in achieving carbon neutrality. Rhizosphere priming effect (RPE) refers to the fact that the presence of living plants significantly affects the carbon dynamics in the plant-soil system, with minor changes affecting soil-atmosphere carbon dynamics. Therefore, the RPE of crops is a vital factor in regulating carbon dynamics and carbon neutrality in farming land. Through a literature review, this paper first summarized the current research status of the effects of various biotic and abiotic factors on the RPE of crops during agricultural practices. Second, this paper summarized the hotspots and challenges in the current studies on the RPE of crops and analyzed their significance to the regulation of soil carbon emissions, elucidating that the existing studies were generally case-specific and lack of universal patterns. Finally, potential strategies for soil carbon regulation and management in agroecosystems were proposed based on the existing studies. This study pointed out the direction for the purposeful regulation of the RPE of crops in agricultural practices and the possible schemes in the field, planting mode and regional scale. This paper can provide theoretical references for eco-agricultural practices to help achieve carbon neutrality as a win-win solution while guaranteeing food security.

This study investigated the impact mechanism of rotational grazing on vegetation communities and soil arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungal communities in mixed-sown artificial grassland ecosystems. Taking the mixed-sown artificial grasslands in Yanchi County of Ningxia as the experimental subject, we set up three different patterns of mixed-sown combinations using a one-way randomized block design: T1 (Bromus inermis Leyss.+Psathyrostachys juncea Nevski+Festuca rubra+Medicago sativa L.+Cichorium intybus L.), T2 (Elymus nutans Griseb.+Psathyrostachys juncea Nevski+Poa annua L.+Medicago sativa L.+Astragalus cicer L.), and T3 (Agropyron cristatum+Psathyrostachys juncea Nevski+Agropyron mongolioum Keng+Medicago sativa L.). Illumina high-throughput sequencing and bioinformatics analysis were conducted to investigate the differences of AM fungal communities in the three mixed-sown artificial grassland ecosystems under grazing disturbance, and to analyze the relationships among the vegetation communities, soil physicochemical properties and AM fungal communities. The results indicated that two consecutive years of rotational grazing had a significant impact on the biomass of the vegetation communities. Compared with those after the first year of rotational grazing, the relative importance values of the leguminous vegetation communities decreased, but the relative importance values of the gramineous vegetation communities increased by 51.16%, 81.25% and 33.33%, respectively. Throughout both years, Glomus and Paraglomus were the dominant genera of AM fungi in the soil. Compared with that after the first year of rotational grazing, the Chao 1 index of the soil AM fungal community in the T1 treatment significantly decreased by 12.35% after two consecutive years of rotational grazing. Nevertheless, the Chao 1 index, Shannon-Wiener index, evenness index and species number of the soil AM fungal community in the T3 treatment significantly increased by 20.73%, 12.80%, 7.69% and 31.16%, respectively (P＜0.05), which indicates that the soil AM fungal community is more sensitive to grazing intensity during the T3 treatment. The soil AM fungal community structures spatially overlapped between the T1 and T2 treatments and separated between the T1 and T3 treatments with the increase of rotational grazing years. The environmental factors attributed to the alteration of AM fungal communities shifted from available phosphorus (p=0.006) and alkali-hydrolyzable nitrogen (p=0.016) to vegetation community biomass (p=0.036) with the increase of rotational grazing years. After two consecutive years of rotational grazing disturbance, the effects of soil nutrients on soil AM fungal community richness diminished, whereas the effects of vegetation community diversity and biomass on soil AM fungal community richness and composition enhanced. In summary, different types of mixed-sown artificial grassland vegetation communities and soil AM fungal communities exhibit different response characteristics to rotational grazing. Among the three types of mixed-sown artificial grasslands, the combination of T3 is superior.