Plant Cells Research Articles

Cell wall modifications in roots of in vitro grown Douglas-fir plantlets exposed to aluminum

Aluminum (Al) is a trace element that may hamper plant growth and development. Tolerance mechanisms could imply the cell wall as it is the first barrier before entry into the plant cell. Douglas-fir plantlets were grown in vitro on media supplemented with different aluminum chloride (AlCl3) concentrations up to 1 mM. The characterization of the cell wall revealed quantitative and qualitative modifications in the polysaccharidic composition of the wall, in particular in roots whose pectins showed a higher galacturonic acid content with less ramification and a lower degree of methylesterification (DME) explained by a higher pectin methylesterase activity; these Al-induced changes suggest an Al-trapping process in cell wall structures. In stems and needles, the observed increase in DME rather suggests an exclusion of Al from the cell wall.

Optimizing extrusion-based 3D bioprinting of plant cells with enhanced resolution and cell viability

3D bioprinting of plant cells has emerged as a promising technology for plant cell immobilization and related applications. Despite the numerous progress in mammalian cell printing, the bioprinting of plant cells is still in its infancy and needs further investigation. Here, we present a systematic study on optimizing the 3D bioprinting of plant cells, using carrots as an example, towards enhanced resolution and cell viability. We mainly investigated the effects of cell cluster forms and nozzle size on the rheological, extrusion, and printability properties of plant cell bioinks, as well as on the resultant cell viability and growth. We found that when the printing nozzle is larger than 85% of the cell clusters embedded in the bioink, smooth extrusion and good printability can be achieved together with considerable cell viability and long-term growth. Specifically, we optimized a bioink composited with suspension-cultured carrot cells, which exhibited better uniformity, smoother extrusion, and higher cell viability over 1 month culture compared to those with the regular callus or fragmented callus. This work provides a practical guideline for optimizing plant cell bioprinting from the bioink development to the printing outcome assessment. It highlights the importance of selecting a matched nozzle and cell cluster and might provide insights for a better understanding and exploitation of plant cell bioprinting.

Break-Up of Plant Cell Structures in High Pressure Homogenizers – Prospects and Challenges for Processing of Plant-Based Beverages

Abstract For more than a century, the dairy industry has used high-pressure homogenization for size reduction of fat globules. The prevailing break-up mechanism, turbulence, has been thoroughly investigated and the equipment continuously optimized thereafter. However, the high-pressure homogenizer is also used in size reduction of plant cell structures, for example in production lines of plant-based beverages, fruit and vegetable juices and ketchup. This review will provide a scientific basis for homogenization of plant-based materials with focus on break-up mechanisms. A cross-study comparison shows that different raw materials break in different ways, e.g. individual cells breaking into cell wall fragments and cell clusters breaking into smaller cell clusters. In general, raw materials which after intense premixing exist as cell clusters are more difficult to break than raw materials existing as individual cells. The resistance to break-up also appears to follow ‘raw material hardness’, where harder raw materials, e.g., parsnip and almond, are more difficult to break than softer raw materials, e.g., strawberry and orange. It can also be concluded that the initial particle size is of large importance for the size after high pressure homogenization. It is concluded that little is known about the break-up mechanism(s). Much does, however, point towards the mechanism being different from that of emulsion drop break-up. Suggestions for future studies, both regarding fundamental understanding (e.g., cell strength and breakup, HPH mechanistic studies and break up visualisations) and industrial applications (e.g., energy optimal operation, device design and wear) are provided.

Identification and functional analysis of Wall-Associated Kinase genes in Nicotiana tabacum

IntroductionWall-associated kinases (WAKs) are pivotal in linking plant cell walls to intracellular signaling networks, thereby playing essential roles in plant growth, development, and stress responses. MethodsThe bioinformatics analysis was employed to identify WAK genes in tobacco. The expression levels of NtWAK genes were assessed by qRT-PCR. The subcellular localization of WAK proteins was observed in tobacco cells and Arabidopsis protoplasts. Kinase activity of the WAK proteins was evaluated through in vitro assays. ResultsWe conducted a comprehensive genome-wide identification and analysis of the WAK gene family in tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum). A total of 44 WAK genes were identified in the tobacco genome, which were further classified into three distinct groups. Phylogenetic analysis comparing tobacco WAKs (NtWAKs) with Arabidopsis WAKs (AtWAKs) revealed species-specific expansion of these genes. The WAK proteins within each group displayed similar gene structures and conserved motif distributions. Promoter region analysis indicated that cis-elements of NtWAK genes are primarily involved in regulating plant growth and development, phytohormone signaling, and stress responses. Expression profiling under NaCl, PEG, and ABA treatments suggested that certain NtWAK genes may play key roles in modulating responses to abiotic stress. Three-dimensional structural predictions and subcellular localization analysis showed that NtWAK proteins from the three subgroups exhibit high cytoplasmic similarity and are primarily located to the plasma membrane. Kinase activity assay confirmed that they possess phosphorylation activity. DiscussionThis study represents the first genome-wide analysis of the WAK gene family in N. tabacum, laying the groundwork for future functional investigations.

Simulation Study of the Water Ordering Effect of the β-(1,3)-Glucan Callose Biopolymer.

Callose, a polysaccharide closely related to cellulose, plays a crucial role in plant development and resistance to environmental stress. These functions are often attributed to the enhancement by callose of the mechanical properties of semiordered assemblies of cellulose nanofibers. A recent study, however, suggested that the enhancement of mechanical properties by callose might be due to its ability to order neighboring water molecules, resulting in the formation, up to room temperature, of solid-like water-callose domains. This hypothesis is tested by atomistic molecular dynamics simulations using ad hoc models consisting of callose and cellulose hydrogels. The simulation results, however, do not show significant crystallinity in the callose/water samples. Moreover, the computation of the Young's modulus gives nearly the same result in callose/water and in cellulose/water samples, leaving callose's ability to link cellulose nanofibers into networks as the most likely mechanism underlying the strengthening of the plant cell wall.

Cell-Penetrating Peptide-Mediated Delivery of Gene-Silencing Nucleic Acids to the Invasive Common Reed Phragmites australis via Foliar Application

As a popular tool for gene function characterization and gene therapy, RNA interference (RNAi)-based gene silencing has been increasingly explored for potential applications to control invasive species. At least two major hurdles exist when applying this approach to invasive plants: (1) the design and screening of species- and gene-specific biomacromolecules (i.e., gene-silencing agents or GSAs) made of DNA, RNA, or peptides that can suppress the expression of target genes efficiently, and (2) the delivery vehicle needed to penetrate plant cell walls and other physical barriers (e.g., leaf cuticles). In this study, we investigated the cell-penetrating peptide (CPP)-mediated delivery of multiple types of GSAs (e.g., double-stranded RNA (dsRNA), artificial microRNA (amiRNA), and antisense oligonucleotide (ASO)) to knock down a putative phytoene desaturase (PDS) gene in the invasive common reed (Phragmites australis spp. australis). Both microscopic and quantitative gene expression evidence demonstrated the CPP-mediated internalization of GSA cargos and transient suppression of PDS expression in both treated and systemic leaves up to 7 days post foliar application. Although various GSA combinations and application rates and frequencies were tested, we observed limitations, including low gene-silencing efficiency and a lack of physiological trait alteration, likely owing to low CPP payload capacity and the incomplete characterization of the PDS-coding genes (e.g., the recent discovery of two PDS paralogs) in P. australis. Our work lays a foundation to support further research toward the development of convenient, cost-effective, field-deployable, and environmentally benign gene-silencing technologies for invasive P. australis management.

Intergenerational transport of double-stranded RNA in C. elegans can limit heritable epigenetic changes.

RNAs in circulation carry sequence-specific regulatory information between cells in plant, animal, and host-pathogen systems. Such RNA can cross generational boundaries, as evidenced by somatic double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans silencing genes of matching sequence in progeny. Here we dissect the intergenerational path taken by dsRNA from parental circulation and discover that cytosolic import through the dsRNA importer SID-1 in the parental germline and/or developing progeny varies with developmental time and dsRNA substrates. Loss of SID-1 enhances initiation of heritable RNA silencing within the germline and causes changes in the expression of the sid-1-dependent gene sdg-1 that last for more than 100 generations after restoration of SID-1. The SDG-1 protein is enriched in perinuclear germ granules required for heritable RNA silencing but is expressed from a retrotransposon targeted by such silencing. This auto-inhibitory loop suggests how retrotransposons could persist by hosting genes that regulate their own silencing.

Intergenerational transport of double-stranded RNA in C. elegans can limit heritable epigenetic changes

RNAs in circulation carry sequence-specific regulatory information between cells in plant, animal, and host-pathogen systems. Such RNA can cross generational boundaries, as evidenced by somatic double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans silencing genes of matching sequence in progeny. Here we dissect the intergenerational path taken by dsRNA from parental circulation and discover that cytosolic import through the dsRNA importer SID-1 in the parental germline and/or developing progeny varies with developmental time and dsRNA substrates. Loss of SID-1 enhances initiation of heritable RNA silencing within the germline and causes changes in the expression of the sid-1-dependent gene sdg-1 that last for more than 100 generations after restoration of SID-1. The SDG-1 protein is enriched in perinuclear germ granules required for heritable RNA silencing but is expressed from a retrotransposon targeted by such silencing. This auto-inhibitory loop suggests how retrotransposons could persist by hosting genes that regulate their own silencing.

Enhancing lipid production in plant cells through automated high-throughput genome editing and phenotyping

Abstract Plant bioengineering is a time-consuming and labor-intensive process with no guarantee of achieving desired traits. Here, we present a fast, automated, scalable, high-throughput pipeline for plant bioengineering (FAST-PB) in maize (Zea mays) and Nicotiana benthamiana. FAST-PB enables genome editing and product characterization by integrating automated biofoundry engineering of callus and protoplast cells with single-cell matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry (MALDI-MS). We first demonstrated that FAST-PB could streamline Golden Gate cloning, with the capacity to construct 96 vectors in parallel. Using FAST-PB in protoplasts, we found that PEG2050 increased transfection efficiency by over 45%. For proof-of-concept, we established a reporter-gene-free method for CRISPR editing and phenotyping via mutation of high chlorophyl fluorescence 136 (HCF136). We show that diverse lipids were enhanced up to sixfold using CRISPR activation of lipid controlling genes. In callus cells, an automated transformation platform was employed to regenerate plants with enhanced lipid traits through introducing multi-gene cassettes. Lastly, FAST-PB enabled high-throughput single-cell lipid profiling by integrating MALDI-MS with the biofoundry, protoplast, and callus cells, differentiating engineered and unengineered cells using single-cell lipidomics. These innovations massively increase the throughput of synthetic biology, genome editing, and metabolic engineering and change what is possible using single-cell metabolomics in plants.

Bundle sheath cell-dependent chloroplast movement in mesophyll cells of C4 plants analyzed using live leaf-section imaging

C4 plants have C4 photosynthetic cycle, a CO2-concentrating pump that functions across mesophyll (M) and bundle sheath (BS) cells. M chloroplasts aggregate toward BS cells in response to environmental stress, which would contribute to adjustment in C4 photosynthetic cycle. However, it remains unclear whether M chloroplast movement is an intercellular response mediated by BS cells. One major challenge to resolve this is the difficulty in observing chloroplast movement due to scattering and absorption of observation light in live-leaf tissues. We established a live leaf-section imaging technique that enables the long-term observation of sections of chemically unfixed leaf blades, with which we quantitatively analyzed M chloroplast movements. Another challenge in clarifying the contribution of BS cells to M chloroplast movement is the selective ablation of BS cells without impairing M cell function. To investigate the necessity of BS cells for M chloroplast movement, we developed a method to remove BS cells only based on differences in shape between M and BS cells. We also found that chloroplasts in M cells without adjacent BS cell contents did not show typical aggregative movement. This indicates that the M chloroplast aggregative movement occurs during communication with BS cells.

TGG1 and TGG2 mutations impair allyl isothiocyanate-mediated stomatal closure in Arabidopsis thaliana.

Myrosinase, referred to as thioglucoside glucohydrolase (TGG), plays a crucial role in plant physiology through catalyzing the hydrolysis of glucosinolates into bioactive isothiocyanates. In Arabidopsis thaliana, the myrosinases TGG1 and TGG2 are essential for abscisic acid- and methyl jasmonate-induced stomata closure. Allyl isothiocyanate (AITC), one of myrosinase products, triggers stomatal closure in A. thaliana. We investigated stomatal responses to AITC to clarify the role of TGG1 and TGG2 in Arabidopsis guard-cell signaling. Allyl isothiocyanate at 50μM and 100μM induced stomatal closure in the tgg1 and tgg2 single mutants but not in the tgg1 tgg2 double mutant. Furthermore, AITC at 50μM induced the production of reactive oxygen species and nitric oxide, cytosolic alkalization, and oscillations in cytosolic free calcium concentration in guard cells of both wild-type and mutant plants. These findings suggest that TGG1 and TGG2 are involved in AITC signaling pathway through interaction with signal component(s) downstream of these signaling events, which is not accompanied by hydrolysis of glucosinolates because of the difference in subcellular localization between enzymes (myrosinases) and substrates (glucosinolates).

Multiomics-based assessment of the impact of airflow on diverse plant callus cultures

Plant cell culture has multiple applications in biotechnology and horticulture, from plant propagation to the production of high-value biomolecules. However, the interplay between cellular diversity and ambient conditions influences the metabolism of cultured tissues; understanding these factors in detail will inform efforts to optimize culture conditions. This study presents multiomics datasets from callus cultures of tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum), rice (Oryza sativa), and two bamboo species (Phyllostachys nigra and P. bambusoides). Over four weeks, calli were cultured under continuous moisture without airflow or gradually reduced ambient moisture with airflow. For each sample, gene expression was profiled with high-throughput RNA sequencing, 442 metabolites were measured using liquid chromatography (LC) with triple-quadrupole mass spectrometry (LC–QqQMS), and 31 phytohormones were quantified using ultra-performance LC coupled with a tandem quadrupole mass spectrometer equipped with an electrospray interface (UPLC-ESI-qMS/MS) and ultra-high-performance LC–orbitrap MS (UHPLC-Orbitrap MS). These datasets highlight the impact of airflow on callus cultures, revealing differences between and within species, and provide a comprehensive resource to explore the physiology of callus growth.

Trends and Challenges in Plant Cryopreservation Research: A Meta-Analysis of Cryoprotective Agent Development and Research Focus

The stable long-term preservation of plant cells is crucial for biopharmaceuticals and food security. Therefore, the long-term cryopreservation of plant cells using a cryoprotective agent (CPA) is a crucial area of study. However, research on low-toxicity CPAs remains limited. We analyzed 1643 abstracts related to plant-cryopreservation (PCP) research published from 1967 to May 2023, spanning 56 years, from academic citation databases, with the search conducted in May 2023. Grouping these abstracts by five-year intervals revealed an increase in PCP papers until 2015, followed by a decline in the 2020s. In order to confirm the declining trend, we performed text-mining analysis using the Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) algorithm, which identifies underlying topics across diverse documents to aid decision-making and classified the abstracts into three distinct topics: Topic 1, “Seed bank”; Topic 2, “Physiology”; and Topic 3, “Cryopreservation protocol”. The decline, particularly in “Cryopreservation protocol” research, is an important observation in this study. At the same time, this decrease may be due to the limited scope of Topic 3. However, we expect improvements with the development of new CPAs. This expectation is based on numerous ongoing studies focused on developing new CPAs for the cryopreservation of various animal and medical cell lines, with particular attention on polysaccharides as components that could reduce the required concentrations of existing CPAs.

Plant Stem Cells in Cosmetic Industry

It is interesting to note that some of the most lucrative commercial products available today are derived from plant cell cultures. Apple, grape, ginger, rice, and other plant stem cells have been successfully and extensively utilized in cosmetic preparations all over the world. The advantages of plant cell suspensions over field-grown complete plants, which exhibit developmental stages of growth, plant age, and organ-specific differences, include sustainability, lack of pesticide residues, and independence from climate fluctuations. The procedure of extracting and purifying physiologically active compounds from plant cell cultures is significantly streamlined because of the possibility that these chemicals may be released into the intercellular gaps or wasted media through the cell walls and membrane. Upon downstream processing from the cells, the released chemicals exhibit minimal losses and a high degree of purity. Overall, the practical interest is in creating high-quality, sustainable, and innovative skincare solutions that meet both consumer needs and environmental concerns while driving the cosmetic industry toward more advanced biotechnological approaches. Our review intends to show the advantages of plant stem cells in cosmetic preparations.

A Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici Effector with DPBB Domain Suppresses Wheat Defense

Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is a primary crop globally. Among the numerous pathogens affecting wheat production, Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici (Pst) is a significant biotic stress agent and poses a major threat to world food security by causing stripe rust or yellow rust disease. Understanding the molecular basis of plant–pathogen interactions is crucial for developing new means of disease management. It is well established that the effector proteins play a pivotal role in pathogenesis. Therefore, studying effector proteins has become an important area of research in plant biology. Our previous work identified differentially expressed candidate secretory effector proteins of stripe rust based on transcriptome sequencing data from susceptible wheat (Avocet S) and resistant wheat (Avocet YR10) infected with Pst. Among the secreted effector proteins, PSTG_14090 contained an ancient double-psi beta-barrel (DPBB) fold, which is conserved in the rare lipoprotein A (RlpA) superfamily. This study investigated the role of PSTG_14090 in plant immune responses, which encodes a protein, here referred to as Pst-DPBB, having 131 amino acids with a predicted signal peptide (SP) of 19 amino acids at the N-terminal end, and the DNA sequence of this effector is highly conserved among different stripe rust races. qRT-PCR analysis indicated that expression levels are upregulated during the early stages of infection. Subcellular localization studies in Nicotiana benthamiana leaves and wheat protoplasts revealed that it is distributed in the cytoplasm, nucleus, and apoplast. We demonstrated that Pst-DPBB negatively regulates the immune response by functioning in various compartments of the plant cells. Based on Co-IP and structural predictions and putative interaction analyses by AlphaFold 3, we propose the probable biological function(s). Pst-DPBB behaves as a papain inhibitor of wheat cysteine protease; Pst-DPBB has high structural homology to kiwellin, which is known to interact with chorismate mutase, suggesting that Pst-DPBB inhibits the native function of the host chorismate mutase involved in salicylic acid synthesis. The DPBB fold is also known to interact with DNA and RNA, which may suggest its possible role in regulating the host gene expression.

The chloroplast-located HKT transporter plays an important role in fertilization and development in Physcomitrium patens.

Cell survival depends on the maintenance of cell homeostasis that involves all the biochemical, genomic and transport processes that take place in all the organelles within a eukaryote cell. In particular, ion homeostasis is required to regulate the membrane potential and solute transport across all membranes, any alteration in these parameters will reflect in the malfunctioning of any organelle, and consequently, in the development of the organism. In plant cells, sodium transporters play a central role in keeping the concentrations of this cation across all membranes under physiological conditions to prevent its toxic effects. HKT transporters are a family of membrane proteins exclusively present in plants, with some homologs present in prokaryotes. HKT transporters have been associated to salt tolerance in plants, retrieving any leak of the cation into the xylem, or removing it from aerial parts, including the flowers, to be transported to the roots along the phloem. This function has been assigned as most of the HKT transporters are located at the plasma membrane. Here, we report the localization of the HKT from Physcomitrium patens to the thylakoid membrane, reminiscent of the prokaryote origin of these family of transporters. Mutation of PpHKT leads to several alterations in the phenotype of the organism, including the lack of sporophyte formation, and changes in expression of many genes. These alterations suggest that the breakdown in chloroplast ion homeostasis triggers a signalling cascade to the nucleus to communicate its status, being important for the moss to complete its life cycle.

Multifaceted roles of the ATG8 protein family in plant autophagy: from autophagosome biogenesis to cargo recognition.

In plant cells, autophagy is an essential quality control process by forming a double-membrane structure named the autophagosome, which envelopes and transports the cargoes to the vacuole for degradation/recycling. Autophagy-related (ATG) 8, a key regulator in autophagy, exerts multifunctional roles during autophagy. ATG8 anchors on the phagophore membrane through the ATG8 conjugation system and participates in different steps during autophagosome formation. Accumulating evidence has demonstrated that ATG8 cooperates with other ATG or non-ATG proteins in autophagosome biogenesis. Meanwhile, ATG8 plays an important role in cargo recognition, which is mainly attributed by the specific interactions between ATG8 and the selective autophagy receptors (SARs) or cargos for selective autophagy. Emerging roles of ATG8 in non-canonical autophagy have been recently reported in plants for different stress adaptation. Here, we review the diverse functions of ATG8 in plants, focusing on autophagosome biogenesis and cargo recognition in canonical and non-canonical autophagy.

FERONIA signaling maintains cell wall integrity during brassinosteroid-induced cell expansion in Arabidopsis.

Plant cell expansion is regulated by hormones and driven by turgor pressure, which stretches the cell wall and can potentially cause wall damage or rupture. How plant cells avoid cell wall rupture during hormone-induced rapid cell expansion remains poorly understood. Here, we show that the wall-sensing receptor kinase FERONIA (FER) plays an essential role in maintaining cell wall integrity during brassinosteroid (BR)-induced cell elongation. Compared to the wild type, the BR-treated fer mutants display an increased initial acceleration of cell elongation, increased cell wall damage and rupture, reduced production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), and enhanced cell wall acidification. Long-term treatments of fer with high concentrations of BR cause stress responses and reduce growth, whereas osmolytes, reducing turgor, alleviate the defects. These results show that BR-induced cell elongation causes damage to cell walls and the release of cell wall fragments that activate FER, which promotes ROS production, attenuates apoplastic acidification, and slows cell elongation, thereby preventing further cell wall damage and rupture. Furthermore, we show that BR signaling promotes FER accumulation at the plasma membrane (PM). When the BR level is low, the GSK3-like kinase BIN2 phosphorylates FER to reduce FER accumulation and translocation from the endoplasmic reticulum to PM. BR-induced inactivation of BIN2 leads to dephosphorylation and PM accumulation of FER. Thus, BR signaling enhances FER-mediated cell wall integrity surveillance while promoting cell expansion, whereas FER acts as a brake to maintain a safe cell elongation rate. Our study reveals a vital signaling circuit that coordinates hormone signaling with mechanical sensing to prevent cell rupture during hormone-induced cell expansion.

Cotton2035: From genomics research to optimized breeding.

Cotton is the world's most important natural fiber crop and serves as an ideal model for studying plant genome evolution, cell differentiation, elongation, and cell wall biosynthesis. The first draft genome assembly for Gossypium raimondii, completed in 2012, marked the beginning of global efforts in studying cotton genomics. Over the past decade, the cotton research community has continued to assemble and refine the genomes for both wild and cultivated Gossypium species. With the accumulation of de novo genome assemblies and resequencing data across virous cotton populations, significant progress has been made in uncovering the genetic basis of key agronomic traits. Achieving the goal of cotton genomics-to-breeding (G2B) will require a deeper understanding of the spatiotemporal regulatory mechanisms involved in genome information storage and expression. We advocate for a cotton ENCODE project to systematically decode the functional elements and regulatory networks within the cotton genome. Technological advances, particularly on single-cell sequencing and high-resolution spatiotemporal omics, will be essential for elucidating these regulatory mechanisms. By integrating multi-omics data, genome editing tools, and artificial intelligence, these efforts will empower the genomics-driven strategies needed for future cotton G2B breeding.

Arabidopsis glycosyltransferase UGT86A1 promotes plant adaptation to salt and drought stresses.

UDP-glycosyltransferases (UGTs) are the largest glycosyltransferase family developed during the evolution of the plant kingdom. However, their physiological significance in abiotic stress adaptation in land plants is largely unknown. In this study, we identified a UGT gene from Arabidopsis thaliana, UGT86A1, that was significantly induced by salt and drought stresses. To explore the potential biological role of UGT86A1 in salt and drought stress response, we created ugt86a1 knockout mutants and UGT86A1-overexpressing transgenic lines, and analyzed seed germination, seedling development and root growth. The results showed that ugt86a1 mutants are sensitive to drought and salt stresses, while overexpression lines show stronger resistance compared with WT, confirming the positive regulation role of UGT86A1 in abiotic stress response. Our following study indicated that UGT86A1 enhances plant resistance against salt and drought stresses via increasing soluble sugar concentration and promoting ROS scavenging capacity, thereby reducing the damage to plant organs and cells. Moreover, we identified that UGT86A1 largely contributes to the upregulation of multiple stress-induced genes under salt and drought stress conditions. Therefore, our results demonstrated that UGT86A1 is a crucial responsive gene to salt and drought stresses in a land plant, thus promoting the understanding of the physiological significance of the UGT family in plant evolution.