Plant species utilize a variety of regulatory mechanisms to ensure sustainable productivity. Within this intricate framework, numerous non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) play a crucial regulatory role in plant biology, surpassing the essential functions of RNA molecules as messengers, ribosomal, and transfer RNAs. ncRNAs represent an emerging class of regulators, operating directly in the form of small interfering RNAs (siRNAs), microRNAs (miRNAs), long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs), and circular RNAs (circRNAs). These ncRNAs exert control at various levels, including transcription, post-transcription, translation, and epigenetic. Furthermore, they interact with each other, contributing to a variety of biological processes and mechanisms associated with stress resilience. This review primarily concentrates on the recent advancements in plant ncRNAs, delineating their functions in growth and development across various organs such as root, leaf, seed/endosperm, and seed nutrient development. Additionally, this review broadens its scope by examining the role of ncRNAs in response to environmental stresses such as drought, salt, flood, heat, and cold in plants. This compilation offers updated information and insights to guide the characterization of the potential functions of ncRNAs in plant growth, development, and stress resilience in future research.

Maize (Zea mays L.) is a global crop species in which CO2 assimilation occurs via the C4 pathway. C4 photosynthesis is typically more efficient than C3 photosynthesis under warm and dry conditions; however, despite this inherent advantage, considerable variation remains in photosynthetic efficiency for C4 species that could be leveraged to benefit crop performance. Here, we investigate the genetic architecture of nonphotochemical quenching (NPQ) and photosystem II (PSII) efficiency using a combination of high-throughput phenotyping and quantitative trait loci (QTL) mapping in a field-grown Multi-parent Advanced Generation Inter-Cross (MAGIC) mapping population. QTL mapping was followed by the identification of putative candidate genes using a combination of genomics, transcriptomics, protein biochemistry, and targeted physiological phenotyping. We identified four genes with a putative causal role in the observed QTL effects. The highest confidence causal gene was found for a large effect QTL for photosynthetic efficiency on chromosome 10, which was underpinned by allelic variation in the expression of the minor PSII antenna protein light harvesting complex photosystem II subunit (LHCB6 or CP24), mainly driven by poor expression associated with the haplotype of the F7 founder line. The historical role of this line in breeding for early flowering time may suggest that the presence of this deficient allele could be enriched in temperate maize germplasm. These findings advance our understanding of the genetic basis of NPQ and PSII efficiency in C4 plants and highlight the potential for breeding strategies aimed at optimizing photosynthetic efficiency in maize.

Summary: Intraspecific variation between crop wild relatives (CWRs) represents a source of untapped genetic diversity for crop improvement. At the same time, improving photosynthesis in crops has the potential to enhance yield. Thus, exploring variation for photophysiology within CWRs is an important, yet underexplored, research area. We describe a common garden experiment where 320 wild barley accessions were grown across two seasons. A photophysiology phenotyping pipeline was employed to quantify > 30 traits within this diversity panel. Population genetics, genome‐wide association analyses (GWAS) and deep phenotyping were performed to address local adaptation hypotheses. Heritable variation was detected across this photophysiological spectrum, with genotype‐by‐environment (G × E) interactions being prevalent. Evidence for local adaptation was observed in the form of subpopulation differences, signals of selection and allele frequency variation associated with markers identified via GWAS. Phenotyping of representative accessions across distinct water availabilities highlighted a role for stomatal conductance ( g _s ) in adaptation to dry environments. We identified substantial variation in key photosynthesis‐associated traits in a CWR closely related to barley, an economically important crop species. Our results demonstrate that this variation is partially due to local adaptation, where plasticity in g _s appears important for maintaining photosynthesis and biomass accumulation in water‐restricted conditions.

Photosynthesis is the fundamental biological process underlying plant growth, crop productivity, and global food security. However, its efficiency is highly vulnerable to abiotic stresses, which disrupt chlorophyll biosynthesis, electron transport, carbon assimilation, stomatal regulation, and photoprotective mechanisms, ultimately reducing crop yield. Improving photosynthetic resilience under adverse environments has therefore become a major objective of modern crop improvement. Recent advances in phenomics and high-throughput phenotyping (HTP) have transformed the evaluation of photosynthesis-related traits by enabling rapid, non-destructive, and large-scale assessment across diverse environments, while facilitating quantitative characterization of structural, physiological, biochemical, and thermal responses to abiotic stress. Technologies including chlorophyll fluorescence, gas-exchange analysis, thermal imaging, hyperspectral imaging, LiDAR, and UAV-based sensing provide comprehensive insights into plant physiological responses and stress adaptation. Integration of these phenomic approaches with genomic information and artificial intelligence (AI)-driven analytical frameworks has strengthened genomic and phenomic prediction, enabling more accurate identification of candidate genes, selection of superior genotypes, and accelerated genetic gain. This review critically synthesizes recent advances in photosynthesis-related traits, phenomics, HTP technologies, and their integration with genomics and AI-assisted breeding, highlighting current challenges, knowledge gaps, and future opportunities for developing climate-resilient wheat and rice cultivars and promoting sustainable crop production.