Background Tuberous root formation and development is a complex process in sweet potato, which is regulated by multiple genes and environmental factors. However, the regulatory mechanism of tuberous root development is unclear. Results In this study, the transcriptome of fibrous roots (R0) and tuberous roots in three developmental stages (Rl, R2, R3) were analyzed in two sweet potato varieties, GJS-8 and XGH. A total of 22,914 and 24,446 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified in GJS-8 and XGH respectively, 15,920 differential genes were shared by GJS-8 and XGH. KEGG pathway enrichment analysis showed that the DEGs shared by GJS-8 and XGH were mainly involved in “plant hormone signal transduction” “starch and sucrose metabolism” and “MAPK signal transduction”. Trihelix transcription factor (Tai6.25300) was found to be closely related to tuberous root enlargement by the comprehensive analysis of these DEGs and weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA). Conclusion A hypothetical model of genetic regulatory network for tuberous root development of sweet potato is proposed, which emphasizes that some specific signal transduction pathways like “plant hormone signal transduction” “Ca2+signal” “MAPK signal transduction” and metabolic processes including “starch and sucrose metabolism” and “cell cycle and cell wall metabolism” are related to tuberous root development in sweet potato. These results provide new insights into the molecular mechanism of tuberous root development in sweet potato.

Glyphosate (GP)-based herbicides have been widely applied to crops for weed control and pre-harvest desiccation. The objective of this research was to evaluate the effects of pre-harvest GP application on maize or how it physiologically alters this crop. Here, we applied four GP treatment (Control, GP150, GP200, and GP250) on maize lines of Z58 and PH6WC belonging to different maturity groups at grain-filling stages form DAP30 to DAP45. GP application significantly decreased the grain moisture content at harvest by 22–35% for Z58 and by 15–41% for PH6WC. However, the responses of grain weight to glyphosate vary with inbred lines and application time. A high concentration of glyphosate (GP250) reduced the grain weight of Z58 and low concentrations (GP150 and GP200) did not affect, while the grain weight of PH6WC significantly decreased under glyphosate treatment. In summary, our results revealed that timely and appropriate GP application lowers grain moisture content without causing seed yield and quality loss. GP application adversely affected photosynthesis by promoting maturation and leaf senescence. Meanwhile, it also enhanced non-structural carbohydrate (soluble sugars and starch) remobilization from the vegetative organs to the grains. Hence, GP treatment coordinates plant senescence and assimilate remobilization. RNA sequencing revealed that glyphosate regulated the transcript levels of sugar signaling-related genes and induced assimilate repartitioning in grains. This work indicates the practical significance of GP application for maize seed production and harvest, which highlights the contributions of source-sink communication to maize yield in response to external stress or pre-harvest desiccant application.

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For complex L12 structure alloys, the slip mechanism and the dislocation dissociation modes cannot be accurately described based only on criteria like the unstable and stable stacking‐fault energies and their ratio. Further precise investigations are required. In article number http://doi.wiley.com/10.1002/pssb.202200211, Zhipeng Wang, Touwen Fan and co‐workers apply the 2D Peierls‐Nabarro model to simulate the <110>{111} superdislocation dissociation in L12‐Al3RE (RE = Er, Tm, Yb, Lu) compounds, revealing three types of dissociation: (i) into two superpartials 1/2<110> (red arrows in top‐right image) connecting anti‐phase boundary (APB); (ii) four Shockley partials 1/6<112> (blue arrows) corresponding to two complex stacking faults (CSFs) and one APB, and (iii) two super‐Shockley partials 1/3<112> (black arrows) bounding superlattice intrinsic stacking fault (SISF).

The complicated superdislocation dissociation, dislocation core properties, and slip mechanism of L12 structural alloys have been controversial. Herein, the generalized stacking‐fault energy surfaces (γ‐surfaces) of the {001}, {110}, and {111} planes in L12‐Al3RE (RE = Er, Tm, Yb, Lu) compounds are first calculated according to ab initio density functional theory. Based on the γ‐surfaces, the superdislocation dissociation modes are preliminarily estimated using the unstable and stable stacking‐fault energies and their ratio. The result shows that the possible type of dissociations cannot be determined just from these ratios. Then, the 2D Peierls–Nabarro (PN) model is applied to simulate the ⟨110⟩{111} superdislocation dissociation configuration evolution in L12‐Al3RE, and the complete dislocation properties, including the dissociation width, the dislocation movement, and the Peierls energy and stress, are also investigated. The present study indicates that the combination of the γ‐surface and the 2D PN model can comprehensively elucidate the superdislocation properties and deformation mechanisms of L12 structural alloys.