Pest control effectiveness and residues of pesticides are contradictory concerns in agriculture and environmental conservation. On the premise of not affecting the insecticidal effect, the pesticide residues in the later stage should be degraded as fast as possible. In the present study, composite nanoparticles in a double-layer structure, consisting of imidacloprid (IMI) in the outer layer and plant hormone 24-epibrassinolide (24-EBL) in the inner layer, were prepared by the W/O/W solvent evaporation method using Eudragit RL/RS and polyhydroxyalkanoate as wall materials. The release of IMI in the outer layer was faster and reached the maximum within 24 h, while the release of 24-EBL in the inner layer was slower and reached the maximum within 96 h. The contact angle of the composite nanoparticles was half that of the 5% IMI emulsifiable concentrate (EC), and the deposition of composite nanoparticles on rice was twice that of 5% IMI EC, which increased the pesticide utilization efficiency. Compared with the common pesticide, 5% IMI EC, the insecticidal effect of the composite nanoparticles was stronger than that of planthoppers, with a much lower final residue amount on rice after 21 days. The composite nanoparticles prepared in this study to achieve sustained release of pesticides and, meanwhile, accelerate the degradation of pesticide residues have a strong application potential in agriculture for controlling pests and promoting crop growth.

Reductive soil disinfestation can effectively alleviate continuous cropping obstacles. The effects of mixing mushroom residues and carbon nanotubes on the structure and function of soil microbial communities and self-toxic substances in Lilium brownii var are still unclear. We evaluated the nature of different soil treatments on soil physicochemical properties, microbial community structural response, and the impact of self-toxic substances. Compared with the compound fertilizer treatment, both organic fertilizer and mushroom residues treatments improved soil pH to 7.06 and 6.57, respectively. Carbon nanotubes treatment increased the relative abundance of Acidobacteriota by approximately 3.96%, although it could not significantly affect the soil pH. The mushroom residues flooded cover film treatment increased the soil pH to 6.75, replenished soil elements, and increased the relative abundance of Verrucomicrobiota and Campylobacterota by 1.62% and 1.79%, respectively. Carbon nanotubes and mushroom residues flooded cover film treatment significantly increased the diversity of the bacterial community. The relative abundances of Acidobacteriota, Verrucomicrobiota, Actinobacteria, and Chloroflexi increased by 2.4%, 1.39%, 0.80%, and 0.53%, respectively. Additionally, the minimum number of self-toxic substances was detected through GC–MS analysis. The results of this study showed that mushroom residues flooded cover film treatment could directly improve the soil microbial community structure by changing the physicochemical properties of the soil, and mixed carbon nanotubes further adsorbed the self-toxic substances. The species composition of fungal communities in the soil had been altered in a way by the different treatments, but the fungal diversity didn't change significantly. This research provides a theoretical basis for revealing the mechanism of continuous cropping obstacles in lily and offering better guidance for sustainable development in lily.

Lilies (Lilium spp.) are globally important ornamental crops which are constrained by their narrow thermal tolerance range. However, tiger lily (Lilium lancifolium), a wild lily species, exhibits remarkable cold tolerance. Based on our previous findings, we proposed that LlR3MYB, an R3-MYB transcription factor (TF), confers cold tolerance via transcriptional regulation of flavonoid metabolism in tiger lily. Here, we revealed that LlR3MYB represents a unique CPC-type R3-MYB TF exhibiting a bifunctional role in flavonoid metabolism. Specifically, LlR3MYB suppresses anthocyanin biosynthesis while promoting non-anthocyanin flavonoid accumulation (i.e. flavonols, flavones, and chalcones) responding to cold stress. Overexpression of LlR3MYB in tobacco and tiger lily increased total flavonoid content but reduced anthocyanin levels, consistent with the upregulation of early biosynthesis genes (e.g. CHS and FLS) and repression of late biosynthesis genes (e.g. DFR and ANS) in the pathway. In contrast, silencing LlR3MYB in tiger lily reduced total flavonoid production, enhanced anthocyanin accumulation, and compromised cold resistance. Mechanistically, LlR3MYB can directly bind to the AC-I element (ACCTACC) and MBSI motif (CAACGGTT) in the LlCHS2 promoter and activating its transcription, with enhanced activation under low temperature conditions. Mutations of critical residues within the C1/C2 repressor motifs may endow LlR3MYB with this transcriptional activation function. Furthermore, LlDREB can directly bind to the DRE motif (ACCGAC) in the LlR3MYB promoter and activating its transcription in a low-temperature-dependent manner. Our findings uncover a branch-specific regulatory mechanism by which MYB TFs fine-tune flavonoid biosynthesis, highlighting their essential role in plant cold stress responses.

Polygonatum cyrtonema Hua is a medicinal plant valued for its dried, fleshy rhizomes. Market demand for Rhizoma Polygonati has surged due to its widespread use in health supplements and treatments for conditions such as diabetes and aging. Our field experiments demonstrated that intercropping P. cyrtonema in Xiangxi golden tea No. 2 gardens can increase farmers' income, achieving a dual harvest with enhanced yield and economic returns. This novel intercropping system has delivered improved social, ecological, and economic benefits. Therefore, we further explored the scientific mechanisms by comparing the rhizosphere microbiome diversity and its correlation with soil properties and tea quality under traditional monoculture and intercropping systems. Rhizosphere metagenomics revealed an altered microbial community structure, notably enriched abundances of Bacillus and Westerdykella, which correlated positively with a 15% increase in tea polyphenol content relative to monocultures. Intercropping also enhanced soil nutrient use efficiency for nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. These findings indicate that integrating P. cyrtonema into tea production systems improves both product quality and ecosystem function, offering an evidence-based strategy for sustainable agriculture.

Polygonatum odoratum is widely consumed as a functional food and is traditionally used for respiratory complaints, yet the material basis of its anti-pneumonia activity and the effect of extraction solvent on that activity remain unclear. Here, untargeted LC-QTOF-MS profiling of the aqueous extract was combined with TCMSP database mining to screen potential active components, and their core targets and binding modes were predicted by network pharmacology and molecular docking. Of 38 potential active components screened by oral bioavailability and drug-likeness, 28 were mapped to 123 pneumonia-related targets. IL6, AKT1, IL1B, TNF, TGFB1, TP53, MMP9, PIK3CG, HIF1A and CASP3 occupied hub positions in the PPI network and were enriched in the IL-17, TNF and PI3K-Akt pathways. Molecular docking of 7 representative components against 9 core targets gave 24 systems with binding energies all below −4.8 kcal/mol, and different components frequently occupied the same binding pocket, indicating a multi-component, multi-target mode of action. Critically, all nine docking targets were functionally interrogated in LPS/IFN-γ-stimulated MLE-12 cells: the 50% methanol extract significantly improved 9 of 10 indicators, outperforming the aqueous extract on all 10, with significant differences in p-AKT and p-CREB (P < 0.05). Medium-lipophilic homoisoflavonoids are therefore the principal material basis of the anti-pneumonia activity, and hydroalcoholic extraction better retains them. These findings support the use of P. odoratum as a functional food ingredient for respiratory health.