Peptide REF1 is a local wound signal promoting plant regeneration.

Plants frequently encounter wounding and have evolved an extraordinary regenerative capacity to heal the wounds. However, the wound signal that triggers regenerative responses has not been identified. Here, through characterization of a tomato mutant defective in both wound-induced defense and regeneration, we demonstrate that in tomato, a plant elicitor peptide (Pep), REGENERATION FACTOR1 (REF1), acts as a systemin-independent local wound signal that primarily regulates local defense responses and regenerative responses in response to wounding. We further identified PEPR1/2 ORTHOLOG RECEPTOR-LIKE KINASE1 (PORK1) as the receptor perceiving REF1 signal for plant regeneration. REF1-PORK1-mediated signaling promotes regeneration via activating WOUND-INDUCED DEDIFFERENTIATION 1 (WIND1), a master regulator of wound-induced cellular reprogramming in plants. Thus, REF1-PORK1 signaling represents a conserved phytocytokine pathway to initiate, amplify, and stabilize a signaling cascade that orchestrates wound-triggered organ regeneration. Application of REF1 provides a simple method to boost the regeneration and transformation efficiency of recalcitrant crops.

A novel miR160a-GmARF16-GmMYC2 module determines soybean salt tolerance and adaptation.

Salt stress is a major challenge that has a negative impact on soybean growth and productivity. Therefore, it is important to understand the regulatory mechanism of salt response to ensure soybean yield under such conditions. In this study, we identified and characterized a miR160a-GmARF16-GmMYC2 module and its regulation during the salt-stress response in soybean. miR160a promotes salt tolerance by cleaving GmARF16 transcripts, members of the Auxin Response Factor (ARF) family, which negatively regulates salt tolerance. In turn, GmARF16 activates GmMYC2, encoding a bHLH transcription factor that reduces salinity tolerance by down-regulating proline biosynthesis. Genomic analysis among wild and cultivated soybean accessions identified four distinct GmARF16 haplotypes. Among them, the GmARF16H3 haplotype is preferentially enriched in localities with relatively saline soils, suggesting GmARF16H3 was artificially selected to improve salt tolerance. Our findings therefore provide insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying salt response in soybean and provide valuable genetic targets for the molecular breeding of salt tolerance.

Inferring Physical Properties of Symmetric States from the Fewest Copies.

Learning physical properties of high-dimensional states is crucial for developing quantum technologies but usually consumes an exceedingly large number of samples which are difficult to afford in practice. In this Letter, we use the methodology of quantum metrology to tackle this difficulty, proposing a strategy built upon entangled measurements for dramatically reducing sample complexity. The strategy, whose characteristic feature is symmetrization of observables, is powered by the exploration of symmetric structures of states which are ubiquitous in physics. It is provably optimal under some natural assumption, efficiently implementable in a variety of contexts, and capable of being incorporated into existing methods as a basic building block. We apply the strategy to different scenarios motivated by experiments, demonstrating exponential reductions in sample complexity.