Genome-Wide Identification of Glutathione S-Transferase Genes in Eggplant (Solanum melongena L.) Reveals Their Potential Role in Anthocyanin Accumulation on the Fruit Peel.

Anthocyanins are ubiquitous pigments derived from the phenylpropanoid compound conferring red, purple and blue pigmentations to various organs of horticultural crops. The metabolism of flavonoids in the cytoplasm leads to the biosynthesis of anthocyanin, which is then conveyed to the vacuoles for storage by plant glutathione S-transferases (GST). Although GST is important for transporting anthocyanin in plants, its identification and characterization in eggplant (Solanum melongena L.) remains obscure. In this study, a total of 40 GST genes were obtained in the eggplant genome and classified into seven distinct chief groups based on the evolutionary relationship with Arabidopsis thaliana GST genes. The seven subgroups of eggplant GST genes (SmGST) comprise: dehydroascorbate reductase (DHAR), elongation factor 1Bγ (EF1Bγ), Zeta (Z), Theta(T), Phi(F), Tau(U) and tetra-chlorohydroquinone dehalogenase TCHQD. The 40 GST genes were unevenly distributed throughout the 10 eggplant chromosomes and were predominantly located in the cytoplasm. Structural gene analysis showed similarity in exons and introns within a GST subgroup. Six pairs of both tandem and segmental duplications have been identified, making them the primary factors contributing to the evolution of the SmGST. Light-related cis-regulatory elements were dominant, followed by stress-related and hormone-responsive elements. The syntenic analysis of orthologous genes indicated that eggplant, Arabidopsis and tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) counterpart genes seemed to be derived from a common ancestry. RNA-seq data analyses showed high expression of 13 SmGST genes with SmGSTF1 being glaringly upregulated on the peel of purple eggplant but showed no or low expression on eggplant varieties with green or white peel. Subsequently, SmGSTF1 had a strong positive correlation with anthocyanin content and with anthocyanin structural genes like SmUFGT (r = 0.9), SmANS (r = 0.85), SmF3H (r = 0.82) and SmCHI2 (r = 0.7). The suppression of SmGSTF1 through virus-induced gene silencing (VIGs) resulted in a decrease in anthocyanin on the infiltrated fruit surface. In a nutshell, results from this study established that SmGSTF1 has the potential of anthocyanin accumulation in eggplant peel and offers viable candidate genes for the improvement of purple eggplant. The comprehensive studies of the SmGST family genes provide the foundation for deciphering molecular investigations into the functional analysis of SmGST genes in eggplant.

Sensory omics combined with mathematical modeling for integrated analysis of retronasal Muscat flavor in table grapes.

This study focused on analyzing the aroma formation mechanism of retronasal muscat flavor in table grapes. The sensory characteristics and fragrance components of table grape juice with different intensities of Muscat were investigated using GC-Quadrupole-MS, quantitative descriptive analysis and three-alternate forced choice. Free monoterpenoids were the main contributors to the retronasal Muscat flavor. The contribution of Muscat compounds to this flavor was quantified by Stevens coefficient, the most and the least sensitive compounds to concentration changes were citronellol and linalool, respectively. To predict the Muscat flavor intensity by mathematical modeling, established a model between Muscat flavor intensity and monoterpenoids concentration, and an optimal partial least squares regression model with a linear relationship between natural logarithms was obtained. These findings provide reference for understanding the formation mechanism of specific aromas in fruits and provide a basis for the development and quality control of processed products such as Muscat flavor grape juice.

iFLAS: positive-unlabeled learning facilitates full-length transcriptome-based identification and functional exploration of alternatively spliced isoforms in maize.

The advent of full-length transcriptome sequencing technologies has accelerated the discovery of novel splicing isoforms. However, existing alternative splicing (AS) tools are either tailored for short-read RNA-Seq data or designed for human and animal studies. The disparities in AS patterns between plants and animals still pose a challenge to the reliable identification and functional exploration of novel isoforms in plants. Here, we developed integrated full-length alternative splicing analysis (iFLAS), a plant-optimized AS toolkit that introduced a semi-supervised machine learning method known as positive-unlabeled (PU) learning to accurately identify novel isoforms. iFLAS also enables the investigation of AS functions from various perspectives, such as differential AS, poly(A) tail length, and allele-specific AS (ASAS) analyses. By applying iFLAS to three full-length transcriptome sequencing datasets, we systematically identified and functionally characterized maize (Zea mays) AS patterns. We found intron retention not only introduces premature termination codons, resulting in lower expression levels of isoforms, but may also regulate the length of 3'UTR and poly(A) tail, thereby affecting the functional differentiation of isoforms. Moreover, we observed distinct ASAS patterns in two genes within heterosis offspring, highlighting their potential value in breeding. These results underscore the broad applicability of iFLAS in plant full-length transcriptome-based AS research.

Comparative Analysis of Metabolic Variation in Eggplant Fruit of Different Varieties Reveals Metabolites Important for Quality Traits.

Eggplant is one of the most important vegetable crops worldwide and has been considered to have great antioxidant activity. However, little information is available about the primary metabolic composition of the nutritional values of eggplant. Using a widely targeted metabolome approach, the current study investigated primary metabolic variation in 13 eggplant varieties with different morphologies. A total of 503 primary metabolites (amino acids, lipids, nucleotides, organic acids, vitamin, saccharides, and alcohols) and 170 phenolic acids were detected, among which 211 metabolites were differently accumulated. Metabolic pathway analysis of the differential metabolites revealed the significant enrichment of phenylpropanoid biosynthesis, arginine biosynthesis, alpha-linolenic acid metabolism, and linoleic acid metabolism. The higher levels of amino acids and lipids were related to the umami, soft, and waxy taste of eggplant fruit. The present work substantially contributes to the knowledge of primary metabolite compositions regarding fruit-eating quality and provides useful information for the future breeding of eggplant.

A rapid and reliable method for the determination of Lactiplantibacillus plantarum during wine fermentation based on PMA-CELL-qPCR.

Real-time monitoring of microbial dynamics during fermentation is essential for wine quality control. This study developed a method that combines the fluorescent dye propidium monoazide (PMA) with CELL-qPCR, which can distinguish between dead and live microbes for Lactiplantibacillus plantarum. This method could detect the quantity of microbes efficiently and rapidly without DNA extraction during wine fermentation. The results showed that (1) the PMA-CELL-qPCR enumeration method developed for L. plantarum was optimized for PMA treatment concentration, PMA detection sensitivity and multiple conditions of sample pretreatment in wine environment, and the optimized method can accurately quantify 104-108 CFU/mL of the target strain (L. plantarum) in multiple matrices; (2) when the concentration of dead bacteria in the system is 104 times higher than the concentration of live bacteria, there is an error of 0.5-1 lg CFU/mL in the detection results. The optimized sample pretreatment method in wine can effectively reduce the inhibitory components in the qPCR reaction system; (3) the optimized PMA-CELL-qPCR method was used to monitor the dynamic changes of L. plantarum during the fermentation of Cabernet Sauvignon wine, and the results were consistent with the plate counting method. In conclusion, the live bacteria quantification method developed in this study for PMA-CELL-qPCR in L. plantarum wines is accurate in quantification and simple in operation, and can be used as a means to accurately monitor microbial dynamics in wine and other fruit wines.

Brain targeted borneol-baicalin liposome improves blood-brain barrier integrity after cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury via inhibiting HIF-1α/VEGF/eNOS/NO signal pathway.

Baicalin (BA) is widely used in the treatment of cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury (CIRI). The key to treating encephalopathy is to increase the amounts of drugs entering the brain. Borneol-baicalin liposome (BO-BA-LP) was prepared in previous research based on the characteristics of borneol (BO) in promoting drug brain entry. In this study, the effect of BO-BA-LP on improving blood-brain barrier (BBB) integrity was researched. Results showed BO-BA-LP may increase ability of BA to penetrate the cell membrane in vitro. Pharmacokinetic results showed the BO-BA-LP could increase concentrations of BA in plasma and brain tissues of normal and CIRI mice. Pharmacological results revealed BO-BA-LP could improve the neurological function, brain edema, and histopathology of CIRI mice. Besides, BO-BA-LP could protect BBB by regulating hypoxia inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α)/vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)/endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS)/nitric oxide (NO) pathway. The research showed that BO in BO-BA-LP could increase the absorption of BA by increasing BBB permeability, leading to a better therapeutic effect of BO-BA-LP on CIRI mice.

Macrophage membrane biomimetic drug delivery system: for inflammation targeted therapy.

In recent years, there have been many exciting developments in the biomedical applications of the macrophage membrane bionic drug delivery system (MM-Bio-DDS). Macrophages, as an important immune cell, are involved in initiating and regulating the specific immune response of the body. Therefore, the inflammatory process related to macrophages is an important goal in the diagnosis and treatment of many diseases. In this review, we first summarise the different methods of preparation, characterisation, release profiles and natural advantages of using macrophages as a drug delivery system (DDS). Second, we introduce the processes of various chronic inflammatory diseases and the role of macrophages in them, specifically clarifying how the MM-Bio-DDS provides a wide and effective treatment for the targeted inflammatory site. Finally, based on the existing research, we propose the application prospect and existing challenges of the MM-Bio-DDS, especially the problems in clinical transformation, to provide new ideas for the development and utilisation of the MM-Bio-DDS in targeted drug delivery for inflammation and the treatment of diseases.

Integrated Metabolome and Transcriptome Analysis Reveals a Regulatory Network of Fruit Peel Pigmentation in Eggplant (Solanum melongena L.).

The color of fruit peel is an economically important character of eggplant, and black-purple eggplant has received much attention for being rich in anthocyanin. However, the reason why different fruit peel colors form in eggplant is not well understood. In the present study, an integrative analysis of the metabolome and transcriptome profiles was performed in five eggplant varieties with different fruit colors. A total of 260 flavonoids were identified, and most of them showed significantly higher abundance in black-purple varieties than in other varieties. The transcriptome analysis indicated the activation of early phenylpropanoid biosynthesis genes (SmPAL, SmC4H, and Sm4CL) was more responsible for anthocyanin accumulation, while SmF3'5'H was the key factor for the formation of a purple color. Furthermore, two transcription factors, SmGL2 and SmGATA26, were identified as new hub genes associated with anthocyanin accumulation. The silencing of SmGL2 and SmGATA26 reduced anthocyanin accumulation in eggplant fruit peels, suggesting the possible involvement of SmGL2 and SmGATA26 in regulating anthocyanin biosynthesis. In addition, the pathway of plant hormone signal transduction was significantly enriched, indicating that phytohormones may cooperatively interact to modulate flavonoid biosynthesis. This study provides comprehensive information of flavonoid metabolites and new insights into the regulatory network of fruit coloration, which might be useful for the molecular breeding of eggplant.

Tryptophan metabolism: Mechanism-oriented therapy for neurological and psychiatric disorders.

Neurological and psychiatric disorders are a category of chronic diseases that are widespread and pose serious mental and physical health problems for patients. The substrates, products, and enzymes of Tryptophan metabolism all contribute to the development of neurological and psychiatric disorders. This paper deals with three metabolic pathways of tryptophan that produce a series of metabolites called tryptophan Catabolics (TRYCATs). These metabolites are involved in pathological processes such as excitotoxicity, neuroinflammation, oxidative stress, and mitochondrial damage and are closely associated with neurological and psychiatric disorders such as Alzheimer's disease and depression. Here, we review the elements that affect how tryptophan metabolism is regulated, including inflammation and stress, exercise, vitamins, minerals, diet and gut microbes, glucocorticoids, and aging, as well as the downstream regulatory effects of tryptophan metabolism, including the regulation of glutamate (Glu), immunity, G-protein coupled receptor 35 (Gpr35), nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR), aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR), and dopamine (DA). In order to advance the general understanding of tryptophan metabolism in neurological and psychiatric disorders, this paper also summarizes the current situation and effective drugs of tryptophan metabolism in the treatment of neurological and psychiatric disorders and considers its future research prospects.

Medicine-food herb: Angelica sinensis, a potential therapeutic hope for Alzheimer's disease and related complications.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease, which has brought a huge burden to the world. The current therapeutic approach of one-molecule-one-target strategy fails to address the issues of AD because of multiple pathological features of AD. Traditionally, the herb of Angelica sinensis (AS) comes from the root of an umbrella plant Angelica sinensis (Oliv.) Diels. As a typical medicine-food herb, studies have shown that AS can alleviate AD and AD-complications by multiple targets through the various foundations of pharmaceutical material and dietary supply basis. Therefore, this review summarizes the pharmacological effects of AS for the treatment of AD and AD-complications for the first time. AS contains many effective components, such as ligustilide, z-ligustilide, n-butylidenephthalide, α-pinene, p-cymene, myrcene, ferulic acid, vanillic acid and coniferyl ferulate. It is found that AS, AS-active compounds and AS-compound recipes mainly treat AD through neuroprotective, anti-inflammation, and anti-oxidant effects, improving mitochondrial dysfunction, anti-neuronal apoptosis, regulating autophagy, regulating intestinal flora and enhancing the central cholinergic system, which shows the multi-component and multi-target effect of AS. The role of dietary supplement components in AS for AD intervention is summarized, including vitamin B12, folic acid, arginine, and oleic acid, which can improve the symptoms of AD. Besides, this review focuses on the safety and toxicity evaluation of AS, which provides a basis for its application. This review will provide further support for the research on AD and the application of medicine-food herb AS in a healthy lifestyle in the future.

Monoterpenoids Evolution and MEP Pathway Gene Expression Profiles in Seven Table Grape Varieties.

This research investigated the evolution of both monoterpenoids and expression profiles of related biosynthesis genes in the MEP pathway in seven different table grape varieties from veraison to maturity stage in two seasons, and the correlation was further evaluated between monoterpenoid accumulation and expression of these genes studied in these varieties. Results showed that linalool, trans-furan linalool oxide, geraniol, and cis-furan linalool oxide were the main compounds in the five Muscat varieties two seasons. 'Zaomeiguixiang' had the highest contents of geraniol and ß-Citronellol. 'Xiangfei' had the most abundant of linalool and cis-furan linalool oxide, whereas the neutral varieties of 'Moldova' and 'Christmas Rose' had the least amount. Monoterpenoid volatiles have been grouped in three evolutionary patterns in the berry development of these varieties. 'Zaomeiguixiang' and 'Xiangfei' had distinct different pattern of terpenoids evolution profiles. Pearson's correlation analysis showed that in the MEP pathway, the first biosynthesis gene VvDXS3 was significantly correlated to the accumulation of monoterpenoids, and appeared to be an important candidate gene for synthesis of the monoterpenoids.

Natural essential oils efficacious in internal organs fibrosis treatment: Mechanisms of action and application perspectives.

Internal organs fibrosis (IOF) is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in most chronic inflammatory diseases, which is responsible for 45% of deaths due to disease. However, there is a paucity of drugs used to treat IOF, making it urgent to find medicine with good efficacy, low toxic side effects and good prognosis. Essential oils (EOs) extracted from natural herbs with a wide range of pharmacological components, multiple therapeutic targets, low toxicity, and broad sources have unique advantages and great potential in the treatment of IOF. In this review, we summarized EOs and their monomeric components with anti-IOF, and found that they work mainly through inhibiting TGF-ß-related signaling pathways, modulating inflammatory cytokines, suppressing NF-κB, and anti-oxidative stress. The prognostic improvement of natural EOs on IOF was further discussed, as well as the quality and safety issues in the current development of natural EOs. This review hopes to provide scientific basis and new ideas for the development and application of natural medicine EOs in anti-IOF.

Transcriptome and Metabolomics Integrated Analysis Reveals Terpene Synthesis Genes Controlling Linalool Synthesis in Grape Berries.

In this study, four hybrids from the cross between "Italia" and "Tamina" grapes were chosen to investigate their distinct monoterpenoids patterns and candidate genes involved. Monoterpenoid profiles and transcriptome data were generated at four berry developmental stages. Trans-rose oxide, cis-rose oxide, citronellol, neral, nerol, nerol oxide, geraniol, geranial, geranic acid, and cis-isogeraniol were the dominant compounds in R250 hybrid, while linalool, hotrienol, linalool oxide pyranoside, and cis-furan linalool oxide were the main compounds in R77 hybrid. Six TPS-g subfamily genes were found related with the contents of linalool and its related monoterpenoids by weighted gene coexpression network analysis (WGCNA) and phylogenetic analysis. Among them, TPS59 was cloned and functionally verified by transient overexpression in the leaves of Vitis quinquangularis. Meanwhile, NAC (newGene_195), C2C2-GATA (VIT_15s0021g02510), and bHLH (VIT_14s0128g00110) were selected as candidate transcription factors (TFs) that could regulate the expression of the six TPS-b genes. These data enhanced our understanding on the regulation of monoterpenoid biosynthesis in grapes.

Natural essential oils: A promising strategy for treating cardio-cerebrovascular diseases.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Essential oils (EO) are volatile compounds obtained from different parts of natural plants, and have been used in national, traditional and folk medicine to treat various health problems all over the world. Records indicate that in history, herbal medicines rich in EO have been widely used for the treatment of CVDs in many countries, such as China. AIM OF THE STUDY: This review focused on the traditional application and modern pharmacological mechanisms of herbal medicine EO against CVDs in preclinical and clinical trials through multi-targets synergy. Besides, the EO and anti-CVDs drugs were compared, and the broad application of EO was explained from the properties of drugs and aromatic administration routes. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Information about EO and CVDs was collected from electronic databases such as Web of Science, ScienceDirect, PubMed, and China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI). The obtained data sets were sequentially arranged for better understanding of EO' potential. RESULTS: The study showed that EO had significant application in CVDs at different countries or regions since ancient times. Aiming at the complex pathological mechanisms of CVDs, including intracellular calcium overload, oxidative stress, inflammation, vascular endothelial cell injury and dysfunction and dyslipidemia, we summarized the roles of EO on CVDs in preclinical and clinical through multi-targets intervention. Besides, EO had the dual properties of drug and excipients. And aromatherapy was one of the complementary therapies to improve CVDs. CONCLUSIONS: This paper reviewed the EO on traditional treatment, preclinical mechanism and clinical application of CVDs. As important sources of traditional medicines, EO' remarkable efficacy had been confirmed in comprehensive literature reports, which showed that EO had great medicinal potential.

Macrophage membrane modified baicalin liposomes improve brain targeting for alleviating cerebral ischemia reperfusion injury.

Baicalin (BA) has a good intervention effect on encephalopathy. In this study, macrophage membrane was modified on the surface of baicalin liposomes (BA-LP) by extrusion method. Macrophage membrane modified BA-LP (MM-BA-LP) was characterized by various analytical techniques, and evaluated for brain targeting. The results presented MM-BA-LP had better brain targeting compared with BA-LP. Pharmacokinetic experiments showed that MM-BA-LP improved pharmacokinetic parameters and increased the residence time of BA. Pharmacodynamic of middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) rat model was studied to verify the therapeutic effect of MM-BA-LP on cerebral ischemia reperfusion injury (CIRI). The results showed that MM-BA-LP could significantly improve the neurological deficit, cerebral infarction volume and brain pathological state of MCAO rats compared with BA-LP. These results suggested that MM-BA-LP could significantly enhance the brain targeting and improve the circulation of BA in blood, and had a significantly better neuroprotective effect on MCAO rats than BA-LP.

Oxalic acid activated bone meal for immobilization of Pb and Cd contaminated soils.

Bone meal (BM) is a cost-effective and low-carbon material to remediate heavy metal contaminated soils. Moreover, its immobilization efficiency for heavy metals still requires improvement. This study aimed to assess the activation effect of oxalic acid on the BM to develop an oxalic acid-activated bone meal (ABM) for improving immobilization efficiency. Several series of tests, including the available phosphorus content test, toxicity characteristic leaching procedure (TCLP), modified European Community Bureau of Reference (BCR) sequential extraction procedure, and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis, are used to investigate the effect of activation on the immobilization ability and chemical speciation of lead (Pb) and cadmium (Cd) in soils and the different mechanisms of Pb/Cd immobilization using the ABM and BM. The results indicate that the ABM possesses a higher solubility than the BM. The activation of BM achieves optimal effect when using 1 mol/L oxalic acid solution with a liquid-solid ratio of 2:1. The TCLP and BCR test results show that the ABM significantly outperforms the BM in terms of Pb immobilization. The leaching concentration of Pb from ABM immobilized soils can meet regulatory limits in China and the USA, and it is also 30 to 75% lower than that from BM immobilized soils. Regarding Cd immobilization, ABM outperforms BM after 90 days of curing. The XRD analysis shows that heavy metal phosphates are the primary products of Pb and Cd immobilized by ABM, whereas heavy metal carbonates are the main products after the immobilization by BM.

Geniposide-Loaded Liposomes for Brain Targeting: Development, Evaluation, and In Vivo Studies.

Geniposide (GE) possesses excellent neuroprotective effects but with poor brain targeting and short half-life. Liposome was considered to have great potential for brain diseases. Therefore, this research aimed to develop a geniposide liposome (GE-LP) as a brain delivery system for cerebral ischemia reperfusion injury (CIRI) therapy and evaluate its characterization, pharmacokinetics, brain targeting, and neuroprotective effects in vivo. Then, a reverse-phase evaporation method was applied to develop the GE-LP and optimize the formulation. Notably, the GE-LP had suitable size, which was 223.8 nm. Subsequently, the pharmacokinetic behavior of GE solution and GE-LP in mice plasma was investigated, and the brain targeting was also researched. The results showed that GE in plasma of GE-LP displayed three folds longer distribution half-life and a higher bioavailability and brain targeting compared to GE solution. In vivo neuroprotective effects was evaluated through the middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) rat model, and GE-LP exhibited a stronger tendency in preventing the injury of CIRI, which can significantly improve neurological deficits. Overall, this study demonstrates GE-LP as a new formulation with ease of preparation, sustained release, and high brain targeting, which has significant development prospects on CIRI; this is expected to improve the efficacy of GE and reduce the frequency of administration.

Hydraulic conductivity of soil-bentonite backfill comprised of SHMP-amended Ca-bentonite to Cr(VI)-impacted groundwater.

Hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) in groundwater impose serious health problems for human society. This study investigates the potential of using calcium (Ca) bentonite amended with sodium hexametaphosphate (SHMP) as a backfill constituent material in the soil-bentonite slurry trench wall to envelop the Cr(VI) impacted groundwater. The hydraulic conductivity (K) and consolidation of backfill comprising of 80 wt% sand and 20 wt% SHMP-amended Ca-bentonite were determined via flexible-wall permeameter tests and oedometer tests, respectively. Microstructure characterizations of the amended bentonites before and after contamination were also explored. The results indicated that when the permeated liquid changed from tap water to Cr(VI) solution, the tested specimens exhibited a 1.0 to 1.2-fold variation in short-term K, with all K values fall in range of 2.1 × 10-10 to 2.5 × 10-10 m/s. This mild variation may be attributed to terminate the tests without achieving chemical equilibrium. On the other hand, the Cr(VI) solution had insignificant effect on consolidation of the amended backfill, which is attributed to the dominated incompressible sand matrix skeleton in the backfill that withstood the consolidation pressure and shield the negative effects of the contaminated solution. The microstructure images revealed that the Cr(VI) resulted in relatively strong interlink between particles. Overall, the SHMP-amended bentonite is promising for enhancing Cr(VI) containment performance of the soil-bentonite slurry trench wall backfills.

A small peptide inhibits siRNA amplification in plants by mediating autophagic degradation of SGS3/RDR6 bodies.

Selective autophagy mediates specific degradation of unwanted cytoplasmic components to maintain cellular homeostasis. The suppressor of gene silencing 3 (SGS3) and RNA-dependent RNA polymerase 6 (RDR6)-formed bodies (SGS3/RDR6 bodies) are essential for siRNA amplification in planta. However, whether autophagy receptors regulate selective turnover of SGS3/RDR6 bodies is unknown. By analyzing the transcriptomic response to virus infection in Arabidopsis, we identified a virus-induced small peptide 1 (VISP1) composed of 71 amino acids, which harbor a ubiquitin-interacting motif that mediates interaction with autophagy-related protein 8. Overexpression of VISP1 induced selective autophagy and compromised antiviral immunity by inhibiting SGS3/RDR6-dependent viral siRNA amplification, whereas visp1 mutants exhibited opposite effects. Biochemistry assays demonstrate that VISP1 interacted with SGS3 and mediated autophagic degradation of SGS3/RDR6 bodies. Further analyses revealed that overexpression of VISP1, mimicking the sgs3 mutant, impaired biogenesis of endogenous trans-acting siRNAs and up-regulated their targets. Collectively, we propose that VISP1 is a small peptide receptor functioning in the crosstalk between selective autophagy and RNA silencing.