Enhancing microRNA167A expression in seed decreases the α-linolenic acid content and increases seed size in Camelina sativa.

Despite well established roles of microRNAs in plant development, few aspects have been addressed to understand their effects in seeds especially on lipid metabolism. In this study, we showed that overexpressing microRNA167A (miR167OE) in camelina (Camelina sativa) under a seed-specific promoter changed fatty acid composition and increased seed size. Specifically, the miR167OE seeds had a lower α-linolenic acid with a concomitantly higher linoleic acid content than the wild-type. This decreased level of fatty acid desaturation corresponded to a decreased transcriptional expression of the camelina fatty acid desaturase3 (CsFAD3) in developing seeds. MiR167 targeted the transcription factor auxin response factor (CsARF8) in camelina, as had been reported previously in Arabidopsis. Chromatin immunoprecipitation experiments combined with transcriptome analysis indicated that CsARF8 bound to promoters of camelina bZIP67 and ABI3 genes. These transcription factors directly or through the ABI3-bZIP12 pathway regulate CsFAD3 expression and affect α-linolenic acid accumulation. In addition, to decipher the miR167A-CsARF8 mediated transcriptional cascade for CsFAD3 suppression, transcriptome analysis was conducted to implicate mechanisms that regulate seed size in camelina. Expression levels of many genes were altered in miR167OE, including orthologs that have previously been identified to affect seed size in other plants. Most notably, genes for seed coat development such as suberin and lignin biosynthesis were down-regulated. This study provides valuable insights into the regulatory mechanism of fatty acid metabolism and seed size determination, and suggests possible approaches to improve these important traits in camelina

Effects of bagging and shading on the content of sugar, acid and flavonoids in fruit of Cerasus humilis

Abstract [Objective] The study aims to investigate the effects of different light exposure durations and intensities on the sugar, acid, and flavonoid contents of Cerasus humilis fruits, and to provide a reference for further exploration of the molecular mechanisms underlying the influence of light exposure on fruit quality. [Methods] The C. humilis varieties ‘Nongda 6’ and ‘Nongda 7’ were used as experimental materials. Fruit bags with three different light transmission rates (30%, 55%, and 100%) were applied during fruit enlargement period and color conversion period, respectively, and measured the fruit mass and titratable acid, soluble solid, and flavonoid content. [Results] (1) The single fruit mass and soluble solid content of both varieties were lower during fruit enlargement period than during color conversion period, and both were decreased gradually with increasing light-blocking rate of fruit bags. (2) The titratable acid content of ‘Nongda 6’ was significantly reduced under bagging treatment, and the higher the light-blocking rate of the fruit bag and the longer the bagging time, the more pronounced the reduction in acidity. In contrast, the titratable acid content of ‘Nongda 7’ was less affected. (3) The flavonoid content of bagged ‘Nongda 6’ was higher than the control, increasing first and then decreasing with the increase in lightblocking rate of the fruit bag, and the content during fruit enlargement period was higher than that during color conversion period. The flavonoid content of bagged ‘Nongda 7’ was significantly higher than the control only at a 30% light-blocking rate, and the content during fruit enlargement period was significantly lower than during color conversion period. [Conclusion] Bagging can effectively improve the sugar, acid, and flavonoid content of C. humilis fruits. Furthermore, bagging during fruit enlargement period is suitable for ‘Nongda 6’, while bagging during color conversion period is more effective for ‘Nongda 7’. Both varieties show the best overall improvement in sugar, acid, and flavonoid content with a 55% light-blocking rate of the fruit bag

Tetraphenylethylene‐Based Multicomponent Emissive Metallacages as Solid‐State Fluorescent Materials

Tetraphenylethylene‐based multicomponent emissive metallacages with high fluorescence quantum yield and good processability were prepared. These metallacages were further utilized as coatings of a blue light‐emitting bulb to prepare white‐light emitting diodes, demonstrating their applications as solid‐state fluorescent materials

Reduced Complexity Node-Wise Scheduling of ADMM Decoding for LDPC Codes

Similar to the belief propagation decoder, linear programming decoding based on the alternating direction method of multipliers (ADMM) can also be seen as an iterative message-passing decoding algorithm. How to schedule messages efficiently is an important aspect since it will influence the convergence rate of iterative decoders. In this letter, we investigate the node-wise scheduling for ADMM decoders, named NS-ADMM. In particular, we propose a reduced-complexity method for the NS-ADMM decoder by avoiding Euclidean projections involved in the calculation of message residuals. Simulation results show that the proposed method converges much faster than the flooding and layered scheduling while keeping a lower complexity when compared with the NS-ADMM decoder