1.Species occurrence records from online databases are an indispensable resource in ecological, biogeographic and palaeontological research. However, issues with data quality, especially incorrect geo‐referencing or dating, can diminish their usefulness. Manual cleaning is time‐consuming, error prone, difficult to reproduce, and limited to known geographic areas and taxonomic groups, making it impractical for data sets with thousands or millions of records. 2.Here, we present CoordinateCleaner, an R‐package to scan data sets of species occurrence records for geo‐referencing and dating imprecisions and data‐entry errors in a standardized and reproducible way. CoordinateCleaner is tailored to problems common in biological and palaeontological databases and can handle data sets with millions of records. The software includes I) functions to flag potentially problematic coordinate records based on geographic gazetteers, II) a global database of 9,691 geo‐referenced biodiversity institutions to identify records that are likely from horticulture or captivity, III) novel algorithms to identify data sets with rasterized data, conversion errors and strong decimal rounding, and IV) spatio‐temporal tests for fossils. 3.We describe the individual functions available in CoordinateCleaner and demonstrate them on more than 90 million occurrences of flowering plants from the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) and 19,000 fossil occurrences from the Paleobiology Database (PBDB). We find that in GBIF more than 3.4 million records (3.7%) are potentially problematic and that 179 of the tested contributing data sets (18.5%) might be biased by rasterized coordinates. In PBDB, 1205 records (6,3%) are potentially problematic. 4.All cleaning functions and the biodiversity institution database are open‐source and available within the CoordinateCleaner R‐package.

Phosphorus (P) is an essential macronutrient, and P deficiency limits plant productivity. Recent work showed that P deficiency affects electron transport to photosystem I (PSI), but the underlying mechanisms are unknown. Here, we present a comprehensive biological model describing how P deficiency disrupts the photosynthetic machinery and the electron transport chain through a series of sequential events in barley (Hordeum vulgare). P deficiency reduces the orthophosphate concentration in the chloroplast stroma to levels that inhibit ATP synthase activity. Consequently, protons accumulate in the thylakoids and cause lumen acidification, which inhibits linear electron flow. Limited plastoquinol oxidation retards electron transport to the cytochrome b₆f complex, yet the electron transfer rate of PSI is increased under steady-state growth light and is limited under high-light conditions. Under P deficiency, the enhanced electron flow through PSI increases the levels of NADPH, whereas ATP production remains restricted and, hence, reduces CO₂ fixation. In parallel, lumen acidification activates the energy-dependent quenching component of the nonphotochemical quenching mechanism and prevents the overexcitation of photosystem II and damage to the leaf tissue. Consequently, plants can be severely affected by P deficiency for weeks without displaying any visual leaf symptoms. All of the processes in the photosynthetic machinery influenced by P deficiency appear to be fully reversible and can be restored in less than 60 min after resupply of orthophosphate to the leaf tissue.

Significance: Photosynthesis is the key biochemical reaction in plants. The molecular mechanisms of potassium (K ⁺ ) transport across chloroplast membranes and their relevance for chloroplast function and photosynthesis remain unknown. In our report, we identify and characterize the molecular basis of K ⁺ (KEA1, KEA2, KEA3) and sodium (NHD1) transporters in chloroplast membranes. We demonstrate that these inner envelope and thylakoid-targeted transporters are essential for chloroplast osmoregulation and thylakoid density. In addition, we discover an unexpected high Na ⁺ restoration of photosynthetic activity in the mutants.

In natural habitats, plants frequently experience rapid changes in the intensity of sunlight. To cope with these changes and maximize growth, plants adjust photosynthetic light utilization in electron transport and photoprotective mechanisms. This involves a proton motive force (PMF) across the thylakoid membrane, postulated to be affected by unknown anion (Cl⁻) channels. Here we report that a bestrophin-like protein from Arabidopsis thaliana functions as a voltage-dependent Cl⁻ channel in electrophysiological experiments. AtVCCN1 localizes to the thylakoid membrane, and fine-tunes PMF by anion influx into the lumen during illumination, adjusting electron transport and the photoprotective mechanisms. The activity of AtVCCN1 accelerates the activation of photoprotective mechanisms on sudden shifts to high light. Our results reveal that AtVCCN1, a member of a conserved anion channel family, acts as an early component in the rapid adjustment of photosynthesis in variable light environments.

Background: In cancer patients, circulating cell-free DNA (ccfDNA) can contain tumor-derived DNA (ctDNA), which enables noninvasive diagnosis, real-time monitoring, and treatment susceptibility testing. However, ctDNA fractions are highly variable, which challenges downstream applications. Therefore, established preanalytical work flows in combination with cost-efficient and reproducible reference materials for ccfDNA analyses are crucial for analytical validity and subsequently for clinical decision-making. Methods: We describe the efforts of the Innovative Medicines Initiative consortium CANCER-ID (http://www.cancer-id.eu) for comparing different technologies for ccfDNA purification, quantification, and characterization in a multicenter setting. To this end, in-house generated mononucleosomal DNA (mnDNA) from lung cancer cell lines carrying known TP53 mutations was spiked in pools of plasma from healthy donors generated from 2 different blood collection tubes (BCTs). ccfDNA extraction was performed at 15 partner sites according to their respective routine practice. Downstream analysis of ccfDNA with respect to recovery, integrity, and mutation analysis was performed centralized at 4 different sites. Results: We demonstrate suitability of mnDNA as a surrogate for ccfDNA as a process quality control from nucleic acid extraction to mutation detection. Although automated extraction protocols and quantitative PCR-based quantification methods yielded the most consistent and precise results, some kits preferentially recovered spiked mnDNA over endogenous ccfDNA. Mutated TP53 fragments derived from mnDNA were consistently detected using both next-generation sequencing-based deep sequencing and droplet digital PCR independently of BCT. Conclusions: This comprehensive multicenter comparison of ccfDNA preanalytical and analytical work flows is an important contribution to establishing evidence-based guidelines for clinically feasible (pre)analytical work flows.

Mycorrhization and phosphate fertilization share cytokinin-improved shoot growth, while enhanced abscisic acid biosynthesis and jasmonate-regulated secondary me