Background: Light is an important environmental signal that regulates the growth and metabolism of fungi. This study aims to reveal the molecular regulatory mechanism of different light durations on the growth activity of Poria cocos. Methods: By setting up three groups of light treatment: 0 days (sample 1), 15 days (sample 2), and 30 days (sample 3), and combining transcriptome sequencing (RNA-seq) with qRT-PCR for verification, the effects of light on the gene expression of Poria cocos (Poria cocos (Schw.) Wolf) were systematically analyzed. Results: A total of 4332 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified in this study. Among them, the blue light-responsive genes, BLI-3 and BLI-4, were significantly upregulated at the DT15 stage, reaching 576.08 times and 31.30 times, respectively, while they were sharply downregulated at the DT30 stage. The KEGG enrichment analysis revealed that the DEGs were mainly involved in secondary metabolite synthesis, carbon metabolism, amino acid synthesis, redox reactions, and the MAPK signaling pathway. At the DT15 stage, genes related to growth metabolism, such as CYP, SNF1, and COX, were highly expressed, indicating active metabolism at this stage. However, in the DT0 and DT30 stages, ROS-related genes such as NADPH-dependent oxidoreductases were upregulated, leading to oxidative stress damage and inhibiting growth. Additionally, the high expression of BLI-3 and BLI-4 significantly activated ergosterol synthesis genes, enhancing cell membrane stability. The WGCNA co-expression network analysis revealed a high degree of correlation between BLI-4 and MAPKKK and CYP genes and proposed a potential “BLI-4-MAPKKK-CYP” regulatory axis, providing insights into the molecular pathway by which light regulates the metabolism and homeostasis of Poria cocos. Conclusions: This study has for the first time systematically revealed the molecular mechanism by which light duration regulates the growth activity of Poria cocos. It has clarified the core role of the BLI gene family in light signal perception and metabolic regulation. It has also elucidated the molecular pathways by which light regulates the synthesis of ergosterol, energy metabolism, and oxidative stress response in Poria cocos. This provides innovative theoretical support for optimizing the light regulation strategies in Poria cocos cultivation and also offers important references for the study of environmental response mechanisms in other medicinal fungi.

Background: Bambusaoldhamii is an important economic bamboo species. However, flowering occurred after its introduction and cultivation, resulting in damage to the economy of bamboo forests. Currently, the molecular mechanism of flowering induced by introduction stress is still unclear. This study systematically explored the key genes and regulatory pathways of flowering in Bambusaoldhamii under introduction stress through field experiments combined with transcriptome sequencing and weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA), with the aim of providing a basis for flower-resistant cultivation and molecular breeding of bamboo. Results: The study conducted transcriptome sequencing on flowering and non-flowering Bambusaoldhamii bamboo introduced from Youxi, Fujian Province for 2 years, constructed a reference transcriptome containing 213,747 Unigenes, and screened out 36,800–42,980 significantly differentially expressed genes (FDR < 0.05). The results indicated that the photosensitive gene CRY and the temperature response gene COR413-PM were significantly upregulated in the flowering group; the expression level of the heavy metal detoxification gene MT3 increased by 27.77 times, combined with the upregulation of the symbiotic signaling gene NIN. WGCNA analysis showed that the expression level of the flower meristem determination gene AP1/CAL/FUL in the flowering group was 90.38 times that of the control group. Moreover, its expression is regulated by the cascade synergy of CRY-HRE/RAP2-12-COR413-PM signals. Conclusions: This study clarifies for the first time that the stress of introducing Bambusaoldhamii species activates the triad pathways of photo-temperature signal perception (CRY/COR413-PM), heavy metal detoxification (MT3), and symbiotic regulation (NIN), collaboratively driving the AP1/CAL/FUL gene expression network and ultimately triggering the flowering process.

Soil-covering and light-exclusion are vital silvicultural practices in bamboo-stand management for improving bamboo-shoot palatability, yet their underlying molecular regulatory mechanisms remain largely unclear. This study aimed to decipher how soil covering modulates flavor and texture in Dendrocalamus latiflorus shoots. Shoots under covered-soil (CSE) and uncovered-soil (USE) conditions were subjected to physicochemical determination of soluble sugar, cellulose, soluble protein and total amino acids, combined with transcriptome sequencing; eight key genes were further validated by RT-qPCR. CSE shoots exhibited significantly elevated soluble sugar and cellulose contents, significantly reduced soluble protein levels, and comparable total amino acid concentrations. In total, 5233 differentially expressed genes were detected. Transcriptomic profiling revealed down-regulation of key synthase genes for tannin and oxalate biosynthesis, implying reduced accumulation of these astringent compounds, alongside repressed lignin and hemicellulose modification pathways and activated cellulose-related soluble-sugar metabolism. Our results suggest that soil-covering and light-exclusion coordinately reprogram multiple metabolic pathways to enhance shoot quality, offering candidate genes and theoretical references for the cultivation of high-quality shoots in managed bamboo forests and flavor-oriented molecular breeding.