As a major component of plant secondary cell walls, lignin provides structural integrity and rigidity, and contributes to primary defense by providing a physical barrier to pathogen ingress. Genetic modification of lignin biosynthesis has been adopted to reduce the recalcitrance of lignified cell walls to improve biofuel production, tree pulping properties and forage digestibility. However, lignin-modification is often, but unpredictably, associated with dwarf phenotypes. Hypotheses suggested to explain this include: collapsed vessels leading to defects in water and solute transport; accumulation of molecule(s) that are inhibitory to plant growth or deficiency of metabolites that are critical for plant growth; activation of defense pathways linked to cell wall integrity sensing. However, there is still no commonly accepted underlying mechanism for the growth defects. Here, we discuss recent data on transcriptional reprogramming in plants with modified lignin content and their corresponding suppressor mutants, and evaluate growth-defense trade-offs as a factor underlying the growth phenotypes. New approaches will be necessary to estimate how gross changes in transcriptional reprogramming may quantitatively affect growth. Better understanding of the basis for yield drag following cell wall engineering is important for the biotechnological exploitation of plants as factories for fuels and chemicals.

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Availability of nutrients in soil plays an important role in the productivity and quality of flowers in chrysanthemum. A set of novel biofilm inoculants- Anabaena-Azotobacter, Anabaena-Pseudomonas fluorescens (An-Psf) and Anabaena-Trichoderma (An-Tr) were applied as carrier based dry formulation or soil drench and their performance compared in two varieties of chrysanthemum (White Star and Zembla), in a climate-controlled greenhouse. Both the An-Psf and (An-Tr) inoculants enhanced glomalin related soil proteins in the rhizosphere of White Star, while in terms of polysaccharide content of soil, both these inoculants performed better in Zembla variety. Significant increases in the availability of selected macro and micronutrients in rhizosphere soil samples, in both chrysanthemum varieties were recorded, particularly when the inoculants were applied as soil drench. Principal Component analysis illustrated the significant interaction among soil and plant parameters, more specifically, the distinct effect of the inoculants, as compared to the application of carrier alone or control treatment. This investigation demonstrated the varietal effects on soil biological activities and significance of mode of application of microbial inoculants in influencing plant growth and rhizospheric metabolic activities.

Screening of phytochemicals for their anti angiogenic potential has been a growing area of research in the current decade. The following study proposes virtual screening, drug likeliness and ADME filtering of specific phytochemical based compounds retrieved from "TIP - A Database of Taiwan Indigenous Plants". The study further subjects the filtered phytochemicals for their molecular docking analysis and molecular dynamics simulation studies against the prominent receptor tyrosine kinases EGFR, VEGFR-1 and VEGFR-2 involved in angiogenesis phenomenon. Among the various in silico analysis done and precise interpretations, the current study finally proposes 1- Hydroxycryprochine as one of the most potent lead in combating angiogenic phenomenon and thus cancer. The following study involves all such important use of in silico platforms, tools and analysis protocols which are expected to reproduce commendable results in wet lab studies. The proposed compound 1-hydroxycryprochine tends to justify its anti angogenic potential in all interactional and stability studies.