The study was aimed to explore the photosynthetic characteristics and yield underground corm of Amorphophallus muelleri under different light conditions. Three intercrop modes of A. muelleri, pruned rubber tree intercrop mode T₁ [forest center (T_1M) and forest edge (T_1S)], interrow mode of puelia T₂[forest center (T_2M) and edge (T_2S)], 50% light transmittance shade mode T_3M, no pruning rubber tree (CK)[forest center (CK_M) and edge (CK_S)] were used. The light intensity (Lux) and photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) in different light conditions were measured. The daily variation pattern of A. muelleri, photosynthetic parameters [net photosynthetic rate (P_n), stomatal conductance (G_s), intercellular carbon dioxide concentration (C_i), transpiration rate (T_r)], chlorophyll fluorescence parameters [maximum photochemical efficiency (F_v/F_m), actual photochemical quantum yield(YII), maximum electron transfer rate (ETR_max), half-saturation light intensity (Ik)], photosynthetic pigment parameters [chlorophyll a (Chl a), chlorophyll b(Chl b), total chlorophyll (Chl a+b), chlorophyll a/b (Chl a/b)] were measured at three stages (head changing stage, corm expansion stage, maturity stage). The yield of underground corm under different light conditions was compared. The results showed that daily variations of Lux and PAR were basically consistent under light conditions, showing “unimodal”modes. There were significant differences in the photosynthetic parameters (P_n, G_s, T_r, and C_i) among different light conditions. Compared with CK, P_n, G_s, and T_r of the T_3M were the significantly highest in all three stages. During the head changing and corm expansion stages, P_n, G_s, T_r of the T₁ and T₂ were significantly higher than those of CK; The chlorophyll fluorescence parameters (F_v/F_m, YII, ETR_max, IK) of each light conditions were significantly higher than those of CK; The changes in photosynthetic pigment parameters (Chl a, Chl b, Chl a+b, Chl a/b) of various conditions were irregular. The Chl a, Chl b, Chl a+b of T₂ and CK were higher than those of T₁ and T₃ at all three stages, and Chl a/b of all treatments was significantly higher than those of CK. From the comparison of light intensity and yield between the forest center and edge under conditions, it can be seen that the forest center is higher than the forest edge. After comparing the implementation effects of various intercropping modes, it can be seen that all treatments have improved the photosynthetic characteristics and yield of A. muelleri, while the pruned rubber tree modes T₁ treatment is most obvious, and achieved the similar effect of single cropping under artificial shade. Therefore, in rubber tree production, pruning measures or other measures is needed to improve the light conditions and replace monoculture artificial shade for planting A. muelleri. The intercrop mode of puelia requires increase in fertilizer application and a reasonable allocation of crop distance direction to effectively alleviate the burns caused by direct sunlight on A. muelleri plants, and improve photosynthetic efficiency, thereby increasing crop yield and land use efficiency.

Nymphaea prolifera has a peculiar and unusual asexual reproductive mechanism called floral “vegetative viviparity” which allows it to produce new seedlings directly from its flowers. Understanding the formation process of floral vegetative viviparity and the effect of endogenous hormones on its formation will provide a basis for further elucidating the mechanism of vegetative viviparity in N. prolifera and the biology of asexual plant reproduction. Morphological observation, paraffin sectioning and scanning electron microscopy were used to analyse the morphological characteristics of vegetative viviparity flowers of N. prolifera as the test group and normal flowers as the control group. Elisa assay was used to compare the deviation in endogenous hormones between “nutrient propagules” from vegetative viviparity flowers and pistils from normal flowers. Nutrient propagules were formed on the receptacle in the original pistil area and are already formed at the stage of flower bud differentiation. In contrast to the flowers of normally developing water lilies, vegetative viviparity flowers only retained receptacle, sepals, and other organs; they lack petals, stamens, and pistils. Then, the nutrition propagules could continually develop leaf and flower buds. The leaf buds were mostly triangular and curled, while the flower buds were mostly hooked or conical and had many ciliated tissues on the surface. A vegetative viviparity growing flower's nutritional propagules could give rise to several asexually reproducing buds, which could then proceed to reproduce in a second and third generation once they reached a particular stage of development. Endogenous hormone assays showed that indoleacetic acid (IAA) and gibberellin (GA) levels were not significantly different between normal and vegetative viviparity water lily flower nutrient propagules, whereas jasmonic acid (JA), cytokinin (CTK) and abscisic acid (ABA) levels were systematically higher in vegetative viviparity water lily flower trophozoites. Vegetative viviparity flowers of N. prolifera had obvious differences in tissue structure compared to normal flowers. During flower bud differentiation, the gynoecium of N. prolifera flowers was replaced by the nutritive propagules to form vegetative viviparity flowers. Compared with those of the gynoecium of normal flowers, three endogenous hormones such as jasmonic acid (JA), cytokinin (CTK) and abscisic acid (ABA) levels were consistently higher in the nutritive propagules of vegetative viviparity flowers, which may contribute to the formation of the floral vegetative viviparity phenomenon.

Cibotium barometz, a nationally second-class protected plant in China, exhibits significant medicinal and ornamental value. It is naturally distributed in the southern regions of China and exhibits stringent requirements for its growth environment. Investigating the physiological response mechanisms of C. barometz to low-temperature stress can provide a scientific foundation for its artificial cultivation and the comprehensive development and utilization of its resources. This study utilized artificially cultivated C. barometz as the experimental material and established three temperature levels: 5 ℃, 15 ℃ and 25 ℃. Each temperature level was subjected to treatments lasting 5 days, 10 days, and 15 days, respectively. Following the stress treatment, chlorophyll fluorescence parameters, physiological indicators, and total flavonoid content in the leaves were measured. The growth and physiological characteristics of C. barometz under different temperature conditions were analyzed based on the experimental results. The results indicated that following exposure to 5 ℃ and 15 ℃, the photosynthetic capacity of C. barometz leaves significantly decreased, whereas the activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and peroxidase (POD) markedly increased. In contrast, no significant differences were observed in the levels of free proline (Pro) and soluble sugars. After 15 days of treatment at 5 ℃, the malondialdehyde (MDA) content in the leaves of C. barometz significantly increased. Proper low-temperature treatment significantly enhanced the accumulation of total flavonoids in the leaves of C. barometz. On the 10th day of treatment at 5 ℃and 15 ℃, the total flavonoid content reached 688.78% and 511.01% of that in the 25 ℃ treatment group, respectively, representing the highest levels observed. This study demonstrated that low-temperature stress exerts differential effects on various physiological indicators in C. barometz. The activities of SOD and POD, and the total flavonoid content, can serve as key indicators for evaluating the cold tolerance of C. barometz seedlings. Temperatures of 15 ℃ and below can significantly reduce the photosynthetic capacity of C. barometz, leading to abiotic stress and a marked increase in the total flavonoid content in its leaves. This result could provide an important reference for optimizing temperature control conditions in the artificial cultivation of. C. barometz.

Considering the deficiencies such as low substrate utilization rate, prone to lose typical flavor, and weak taste in liquid fermentation process of pineapple vinegar, the paper intended to explore the effects of different carbon sources (sucrose, inulin) and nitrogen sources (chromium-rich yeast, soybean protein) on the physicochemical indexes (total acid, reducing sugar, total polyphenols and total acid), antioxidant activity (DPPH free radical and ABTS⁺ clearance rate) and volatile components in the fermentation process of pineapple vinegar, which was aimed to improve substrate utilization and vinegar quality. The results showed that not only different carbon sources and but also nitrogen sources could significantly increase the acid production of acetic acid bacteria, and the abilities of nitrogen sources to promote the utilization of reducing sugar and acid production of acetic acid bacteria were better than that of carbon sources. The nitrogen source had higher effects on the contents of total polyphenols, total flavonoids and the ability of scavenging DPPH and ABTS free radicals than carbon source. Besides, a total of 37 volatile components were detected in pineapple vinegar under four treatments, mainly included esters, alcohols, acids, phenols, ketones and so on. The total concentration of volatile components of pineapple vinegar in nitrogen source treatments was higher than that in carbon source treatments. The concentrations of esters and acids were the highest with value of 3712.37 μg/L and 972.97 μg/L, and were 6.39 times and 8.76 times of those in the sucrose treatment, respectively. Compared with sucrose treatment, the total concentration of volatile components in other treatments increased by 3.78-5.19 times. There were two key volatile compounds in the sucrose treatment (ethyl decanoate and phenylethanol), ethyl caproate, isoamyl acetate, ethyl decanoate and phenyl ethyl) were key volatile compounds in the inulin treatment, and five key volatile compounds in the nitrogen source group were isoamyl acetate, ethyl caproate, ethyl decanoate, linalool and phenylethanol. Appropriate addition of organic nitrogen source could promote acetic acid fermentation process, maximize the fermentation potential of acetobacter, enhance antioxidant activity of pineapple vinegar, to improve the content of total phenol and total flavone, and pineapple vinegar flavor.

It was aimed to investigate the characteristics of variations in color and sugar components within sweet potato tuberous root under diverse storage temperatures and to offer references for the formulation of storage and quality control measures for sweet potato tuberous root. The sweet potato tuberous root of Pushu 32 was respectively stored in environments of 25 ℃ (normal temperature control), 14 ℃ (low-temperature treatment), and –4 ℃ (near -freezing temperature treatment). The color of the tuberous root was measured using a colorimeter, and the contents of total soluble sugar, sucrose, fructose, glucose, and starch within the tuberous root were determined. Meanwhile, the activity of amylase, neutral invertase, and acid invertase involved in sugar metabolism of the tuberous root was measured, and the correlation analysis was conducted on color and sugar contents. During the storage period (0-60 days), the L^* value of the tuberous root at 25 ℃ control and 14 ℃ did not exhibit significant changes compared with the initial sampling point (0 days), while the L^* value of the tuberous root at –4 ℃ was consistently significantly lower than that of the initial sampling point. The a^* and b^* values of the tuberous root at the three temperatures fluctuated with the prolongation of the storage time. Under the 14 ℃, the content of soluble sugar in the tuberous root gradually increased with the extension of the storage time, and the sucrose content of the tuberous root under the 14 ℃ was always higher than that of the 25℃control and –4 ℃ treatment during the same period. The starch content of the tuberous root at the three temperatures significantly decreased with the prolongation of the storage time. In the early stage of storage (0-20 days), the activity of amylase, neutral invertase, and acid invertase within the sweet potato tuberous root at –4℃ was higher than those at 25 ℃ and 14 ℃. The correlation analysis indicated that the starch c ontent of the tuberous root was extremely significantly negatively correlated with neutral invertase and acid invertase; the L^* value, b^* value, and H° value of the tuberous root were extremely significantly positively correlated with sucrose, which could be utilized as indicators for evaluating the sucrose content in the tuberous root. Thus, among the three storage temperatures, 14 ℃ induced the best saccharification effect on sweet potato tuberous root, effectively facilitating the accumulation of soluble sugar substances within the tuberous root, and could be regarded as a more suitable storage temperature for this variety; –4 ℃exerted a considerable influence on the color change of sweet potato tuberous root. The color change during the storage process of the tuberous root was closely related to sugar metabolism, and invertase might be the key enzyme regulating the metabolism of soluble sugar during the storage process of this variety. The research findings would offer a reference for enhancing the quality characteristics and optimizing the processing techniques of sweet potato processed products.

In order to investigate the biocontrol ability and mechanism of Burkholderia GXMZU-5 with quorum quenching activity, the biocontrol effect was verified through experiments on bacterial soft rot of banana fruits and potted seedlings (Dickeya zeae GR-1), and the biocontrol mechanism was verified by measuring the content of biofilm, the ability to remove extracellular polysaccharides, the ability to inhibit the metabolic activity of biofilm, and PCR amplification of QQ enzyme homologous genes. The results showed that GXMZU-5 could effectively degrade acylhomoserine lactone (AHLs) signal molecules and had AHLs quenching ability. In the biocontrol experiment on banana fruits, the surface of the mixed bacteria experimental group was healthier than that of the control group, with no obvious black spots or soft rot signs. The cross-section and longitudinal section results of banana fruits showed that the lesion area of the treatment group was significantly reduced. In the potted plant control experiment, there were no obvious signs of rot at the injection site of the mixed bacteria group, and the natural plant height recovered by 56% compared with the pathogen group, indicating that GXMZU-5 had a significant inhibitory effect on the disease caused by Dickeya zeae GR-1. The results for exploring of the biocontrol mechanism showed that the total content of biofilm and the content of extracellular polysaccharides in the mixed bacteria system were lower than those of the two bacteria cultured separately. The MTT method for measuring biofilm metabolism indicated that GXMZU-5 could effectively reduce the biofilm metabolic activity of Dickeya zeae GR-1 and occupied a dominant position in the mixed bacteria system. The exploration of the biocontrol mechanism indicated that GXMZU-5 could reduce the biomass and vitality of Dickeya zeae GR-1 biofilm through quenching effect, thereby obtaining biocontrol ability. The amplification of QQ enzyme homologous genes showed that GXMZU-5 had the aiiA lactonase gene and could quench AHLs signal molecules. This study verified the biocontrol ability of GXMZU-5 and preliminarily explored its biocontrol mechanism, providing a certain reference basis for the use of quenching bacteria to control plant bacterial diseases.

Wilt caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. Cubense is currently the most serious disease affecting the sustainable and healthy development of the global banana industry. To screen superior arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi that significantly promote the growth and disease resistance of banana tissue culture seedlings, this study compared the effects of five dominant AM fungi isolated from the main banana producing areas in Guangxi on the growth and Fusarium wilt of banana tissue culture seedlings under pot conditions. The results showed that the mycorrhizal infection rate of banana tissue culture seedlings inoculated with AM fungi ranged from 15.00% to 95.00%, they were as follows: BNMJ-1 (C. etunicatum) > BNTJ-6 (G. mosseae) > HTJ2-60 (C. lamellosum) > BDQJ-2 (G. fulvum) > GZXJ-10 (Paraglomus sp.). All the inoculation treatments significantly promoted the growth of banana tissue culture seedlings except for the GZXJ-10 treatment, and the results of membership function comprehensive analysis showed that the BNMJ-1 treatment had the most significant growth-promoting effect, which increased plant height, stem diameter, number of leaves, maximum root length and total biomass by 68.60%, 44.54%, 40.67%, 12.05% and 65.15%, respectively, compared with the control, followed by the BNTJ-6 treatment. BNMJ-1 treatment was the most effective in wilt control, followed by BNTJ-6 treatment, which decreased the disease index by 93.37% and 89.03% compared to the control and the preventive efficacy reached 93.64% and 88.85%. In summary, among the five AM fungi for testing, the strains with better disease-promoting resistance to banana seedlings grown in tissue culture were BNMJ-1 and BNTJ-6. Therefore, screening to obtain the advantageous AM fungal strains for banana tissue culture seedlings lays the foundation for the later development of banana mycorrhizal seedlings as well as special mycorrhizal fungal fungicides and fungal fertilizers.

Atg26 (or Ugt51) is a UDP-glucose: sterol glucosyltransferase, which regulates the biological process of sterol conversion to sterol glucoside (SG), participates in various cellular autophagy processes, and plays an important role in fungal growth, development and pathogenicity. In order to investigate the role of Atg26 in the growth, development and virulence of Peronophythora litchii, six Atg26 homologous proteins were identified through bioinformatics. The analysis of protein properties showed that the secondary structure of the protein was mainly random curling and had hydrophilic properties. The results of gene and protein structure analysis showed that except PlATG26a, the other ATG26 homologous genes of P. litchii had introns, which were mostly distributed at the end of the gene. All Atg26 homologous proteins contained the CAT catalytic domain, but did not have the PH (pleckstrin homology) and GRAM (glucosyltransferase, Rab-like GTPase activators, and myotubularins) domains that make up the PBD (phosphoinositide binding domain). Further phylogenetic and conserved motif analysis of Atg26 homologous proteins found that diversity existed among the Atg26 homologous proteins in P. litchii, but the CAT domain of Atg26 was conserved in different species. Protein interaction prediction and protein molecular docking analysis showed that the interacting proteins of PlAtg26 were mostly located in the cytoplasm or membrane, concentrated in the process of cell metabolism, and had catalytic activity, REDOX activity or binding ability, which also indicated that PlAtg26 may not require the binding ability of GRAM domain for localization. Quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) analysis showed that PlATG26b was up-regulated in zoospore stage and early infection, but had no significant difference in sporangium stage and late infection. This result also indicated that Atg26 played an important role in the asexual reproduction and infection of P. litchii. In conclusion, PlAtg26 and Atg26 homologues in fungi have significant structural differences and may show different biological functions from fungi.

Paurocephala sauteri Enderlein is an important pest of tropical and subtropical mulberry, which seriously threatens the diversified development of tropical sericulture industry. Fatty acyl-CoA reductase (FAR) exists in various organisms and participates in the biosynthesis of fatty acid derivatives, and then participates in many life activities such as wax synthesis, reproduction, sexual information recognition and communication. A total of 23 FAR genes were screened in this study. Protein analysis showed that most of them were alkaline proteins with hydrophilicity. Subcellular localization prediction found that 17 FAR proteins were located in the cytoplasm, one FAR proteinin the mitochondria, one FAR protein in the nucleus, and four FAR proteins in the plasma membrane, indicating that the main place for the PsmFAR gene to function was the cytoplasm. Combined with the function of other known insect FAR genes and the expression analysis of FAR genes in nymphs, female adults, male adults and different parts of P. sauteri, it was found that FAR genes could be involved in development, reproduction, wax synthesis, cuticle synthesis, pheromone synthesis and detoxification. In addition to seven genes only involved in wax synthesis, the remaining 16 genes may be involved in multiple biological functions, including 16 genes (69.56%) involved in reproduction, 16 genes (69.56%) involved in wax synthesis, 12 genes (52.17%) involved in cuticle synthesis, and nine genes (39.13%) involved in development. There were five genes (21.74%) related to detoxification and four genes (17.39%) related to pheromone synthesis. In this study, based on the transcriptome sequencing analysis, the identification, sequence composition and expression analysis of the FAR gene family were carried out to explore the function of the FAR gene in the life activities of the P. sauteri, and to provide a theoretical basis for its efficient prevention and control technology and the development and application of targeted insecticides. Further verification of subsequent functions would provide a basis for the development of precise prevention and control agents targeting the FAR gene.

Red fire ant, Solenopsis invicta, a serious invasive pest native to South America, has been widely distributed in China, posing significant threats to agriculture, natural ecosystems, and public health. Effective entry-exit quarantine measures are essential to prevent the invasion and spread of S. invicta, which requires rapid and accurate identification of the pest. Existing detection methods, including morphological identification, DNA barcoding, immunoassay, and loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) have limitations in simplicity, detection speed and sensitivity. Recombinase polymerase amplification (RPA) is an isothermal amplification technique characterized by its simplicity, high sensitivity, and efficient amplification. To enable rapid and accurate on-site detection of S. invicta, this study developed a visual detection method based on RPA technology. Mitochondrial genome sequences of S. invicta and closely related or morphologically similar species were analyzed using data from the NCBI database. The mitochondrial NADH₂ dehydrogenase gene was selected as the target for amplification, and specific RPA primers were designed. Experimental results confirmed that the primers demonstrated high specificity for S. invicta. Sensitivity testing using agarose gel electrophoresis revealed that the RPA reaction could detect as low as 1.0×10^-4 ng/μL, which is 10³ times more sensitive than conventional PCR. A visual detection method was further developed by incorporating nucleic acid dyes into the reaction, achieving a sensitivity of approximately 1.0×10^-1 ng/μL. Additionally, a rapid DNA extraction method was explored. This method involved grinding ant samples in sterile water followed by heating at 100 ℃ in a water bath for one minute, which successfully yielding crude DNA. The developed method enables gene amplification of S. invicta at 37 ℃, with detection results assessed via fluorescence reactions, completing the entire process within 30 minutes. This approach provides a convenient, rapid, accurate, and reliable technical method for detecting S. invicta, offering valuable technical support for its quarantine, prevention and control.