Triacylglycerol (TAG) is the most important storage lipid for oil plant seeds. Diacylglycerol acyltransferases (DGATs) are a key group of rate-limiting enzymes in the pathway of TAG biosynthesis. In plants, there are three types of DGATs, namely, DGAT1, DGAT2 and DGAT3. Brassica napus, an allotetraploid plant, is one of the most important oil plants in the world. Previous studies of Brassica napus DGATs (BnaDGATs) have mainly focused on BnaDGAT1s. In this study, four DGAT1s, four DGAT2s and two DGAT3s were identified and cloned from B. napus ZS11. The analyses of sequence identity, chromosomal location and collinearity, phylogenetic tree, exon/intron gene structures, conserved domains and motifs, and transmembrane domain (TMD) revealed that BnaDGAT1, BnaDGAT2 and BnaDGAT3 were derived from three different ancestors and shared little similarity in gene and protein structures. Overexpressing BnaDGATs showed that only four BnaDGAT1s can restore TAG synthesis in yeast H1246 and promote the accumulation of fatty acids in yeast H1246 and INVSc1, suggesting that the three BnaDGAT subfamilies had greater differentiation in function. Transcriptional analysis showed that the expression levels of BnaDGAT1s, BnaDGAT2s and BnaDGAT3s were different during plant development and under different stresses. In addition, analysis of fatty acid contents in roots, stems and leaves under abiotic stresses revealed that P starvation can promote the accumulation of fatty acids, but no obvious relationship was shown between the accumulation of fatty acids with the expression of BnaDGATs under P starvation. This study provides an extensive evaluation of BnaDGATs and a useful foundation for dissecting the functions of BnaDGATs in biochemical and physiological processes.

Peanut (Arachis hypogaea) is an important oil and economic crop widely cultivated worldwide. Increasing the oil yield is a major objective for oilseed crop improvement. Plant LEAFY COTYLEDON1s (LEC1s), FUSCA3s (FUS3s), and WRINKLED1s (WRI1s) are known master regulators of seed development and oil biosynthesis. While previous studies in peanut have primarily focused on two AhLEC1s and one AhWRI1 genes, this study identified a broader set of regulators, including two AhLEC1s, two AhFUS3s, nine AhWRI1s, two AhWRI2s, and four AhWRI3s from the variety HY917. The analyses of phylogenetic trees, gene structures, conserved domains, sequence alignment and identity, and collinearity revealed that they were highly similar to their homologs in other plants. Expression profiling demonstrated that two AhLEC1s, two AhFUS3s, and three AhWRI1s (AhWRI1a/b/c) were specifically expressed in developing seeds, suggesting critical roles in seed development, whereas AhWRI1d, AhWRI1f, and AhWRI1g showed high expression in root nodules, pointing to potential functions in symbiosis and nodulation. Furthermore, co-overexpression of AhLEC1b, AhFUS3b, AhWRI1a, and AhWRI1d in Arabidopsis significantly enhanced seed oil content and thousand-seed weight, but also led to reduced germination rate, plant height, and silique length. The findings allow for the extensive evaluation of AhLEC1s, AhFUS3s, and AhWRIs gene families, establishing a useful foundation for future research into their multiple roles in peanut development.

Fresh peanuts (Arachis hypogaea L.) are highly susceptible to Aspergillus flavus contamination, leading to rapid quality deterioration. Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are well established as natural agents for preserving agricultural products and inhibiting pathogenic microorganisms. However, their efficacy against A. flavus in fresh peanuts remains underexplored. This study evaluated the efficacy of Pediococcus pentosaceus DB12 cell-free supernatant (P. pentosaceus DB12 CFS) in mitigating A. flavus contamination in fresh peanuts, integrating assessments of quality parameters, microbial indices and untargeted metabolomics. Results demonstrated that P. pentosaceus DB12 CFS effectively mitigated A. flavus-induced deterioration in fresh peanuts, as evidenced by improved retention of color, textural hardness, and weight during storage. P. pentosaceus DB12 CFS also significantly reduced total number of mold colonies and mildew rate. Furthermore, it suppressed electrolyte leakage and malondialdehyde accumulation, inhibited peroxide and acid value elevation, and minimized the degradation of soluble sugars and sucrose. Metabolomic analysis further revealed the activation of phenylalanine metabolism, stilbenoid, diarylheptanoid and gingerol biosynthesis, and glutathione metabolism, thereby enhancing disease resistance in fresh peanuts. This study not only establishes the efficacy of P. pentosaceus DB12 CFS in mitigating postharvest A. flavus contamination in fresh peanuts but also provides a foundation for developing safe and efficient biocontrol technologies.

Peanut is one of the widely cultivated oil and economic crops worldwide and has become a major source of oil and protein for humans due to its high oil and protein content. With the increasing global demand for vegetable oil, improving the fatty acid composition and increasing the lipid content of peanut seeds has become a top priority in peanut breeding. Transcriptional regulators can modulate the expression of a series of genes in metabolic pathways related to lipid synthesis, significantly affecting lipid synthesis and metabolism. In this study, two transcription factors, AhWRI1-1 and AhWRI1-2, were cloned from the leaves of Huayu 33. The ORF of AhWRI1-1 was 1101 bp, encoding 366 amino acids, and the ORF of AhWRI1-2 was 1128 bp, encoding 375 amino acids. Bioinformatics analysis revealed that both AhWRI1-1 and AhWRI1-2 contained two AP2/EREBP conserved domains. The expression patterns of AhWRI1-1 and AhWRI1-2 in different tissues were detected by qRT-PCR. The results showed that AhWRI1-1 had the highest expression in seeds, suggesting its involvement in the regulation of fatty acid synthesis and oil accumulation, while AhWRI1-2 had the highest expression in hypocotyls, indicating its role in hypocotyl development. Additionally, the differences in the responses of AhWRI1-1 and AhWRI1-2 to abiotic stresses suggested that these transcription factors may play different roles under such conditions. Transcriptional activation experiments in yeast showed that both AhWRI1-1 and AhWRI1-2 possess transcriptional activation activities. This study lays the foundation for future in-depth functional studies of AhWRI1-1 and AhWRI1-2.