Anthurium andraeanum, an important ornamental flower, has to go through a growth-delaying period after transfer from tissue culture to soil, which requires time and extra costs. Furthermore, during this period, the plantlets are highly susceptible to bacterial infections, which results in impaired development and severe losses. Here, we aimed to address whether application of the endophytic fungus, Piriformospora indica protects the A. andraeanum root system during the critical propagation period, and whether P. indica reduce the mortality rate by stimulating the host’s resistance against diseases. We demonstrate that P. indica shortens the recovery period of Anthurium, promotes growth and confers disease resistance. The beneficial effect of P. indica results in faster elongation of Anthurium roots early in the interaction. P. indica-colonized plants absorb more phosphorus and exhibit higher photosynthesis rates than uncolonized control plants. Moreover, higher activities of stress-related enzymes, of jasmonic acid levels and mRNA levels of jasmonic acid-responsive genes suggest that the fungus prepares the plant to respond more efficiently to potentially upcoming threats, including bacterial wilt. These results suggest that P. indica is a helpful symbiont for promoting Anthurium rooting and development. All our evidences are sufficient to support the disease resistance conferred by P. indica through the plant-fungal symbiosis. Furthermore, it implicates that P. indica has strong potential as bio-fertilizer for utilization in ornamental plant cultivation.

The tissue culture regeneration system of Lupinus albus has always been considered as recalcitrant material due to its genotype-dependent response and low regeneration efficiency that hamper the use of genetic engineering. Establishment of repeatable plant regeneration protocol is a prerequisite tool for successful application of genetic engineering. This aim of this study was to develop standardized, efficient protocol for successful shoot induction from cotyledonary node of white lupin. In this study, 5 day old aseptically cultured seedlings were used to prepare three explants (half cotyledonary node, HCN; whole cotyledonary node, WCN; and traditional cotyledonary node, TCN), cultured on four concentrations of M519 medium (M519, ½ M519, ^1/3 M519, and ¼ M519), containing four carbohydrate sources (sucrose, fructose, maltose, and glucose), and stimulated with various combinations of KT (kinetin), and NAA (naphthalene acetic acid) for direct shoot regeneration. High frequency of 80% shoot regeneration was obtained on ½ M519 medium (KT 4.0 mg L⁻¹ + NAA 0.1 mg L⁻¹) by using HCN as an explant. Interestingly, combinations of (KT 4.0 mg L⁻¹ + NAA 0.1 mg L⁻¹ + BAP 1.67 mg L⁻¹), and (KT 2.0 mg L⁻¹ + NAA 0.1 mg L⁻¹) showed similar shoot regeneration frequency of 60%. Augmentation of 0.25 g L⁻¹ activated charcoal (AC) not only reduced browning effect but also improved shoot elongation. Among the all carbohydrate sources, sucrose showed the highest regeneration frequency with HCN. Additionally, 80% rooting frequency was recorded on ½ M519 containing IAA 1.0 mg L⁻¹ + KT 0.1 mg L⁻¹ (indole acetic acid) after 28 days of culturing. The present study describes establishment of an efficient and successful protocol for direct plant regeneration of white lupin from different cotyledonary nodes.

Gerbera (Gerbera hybrida) is a popular cut flower on the market, so extending its vase life (VL) is an important goal in the horticultural industry. The aim of this study was to improve the freshness of gerbera cut flowers through the optimal solution (OS) and to analyze its preservation mechanism. We used chitosan (COS), calcium chloride (CaCl₂), and citric acid (CA) as the main ingredients of the vase solution and determined the OS ratio of 104 mg/L of COS, 92 mg/L of CA, and 93 mg/L of CaCl₂ using the Box–Behnken design-response surface method (BBD-RSM). Gerbera preservation results showed that the VL of the OS was 14.5 days, which was significantly longer than that of flowers maintained in the Basic Vase Solution (BVS) and the Commercial Formulation (CF) and was highly consistent with the theoretical VL of 14.57 d. Transcriptome analysis indicated that the OS might extend VL by regulating phytohormone signaling pathways, such as cytokinin and salicylic acid signaling. The qRT-PCR analysis of key candidate genes supported these findings, with significant upregulation observed in genes related to cytokinin synthesis (e.g., GhIPT1 and GhIPT9), salicylic acid signaling related to pathogen defense (e.g., GhTGA1, GhTGA4, GhNPR1, and GhRBOHA), and plant wax synthesis and stress response (e.g., GhKCS5, GhCUT1, and GhKCS6). Further, transcriptome GO-enrichment and physiological analysis showed that the OS might extend VL of Gerbera cut flowers by scavenging reactive oxygen species, including by activating the expression of genes related to oxidoreductase activity and the activities of antioxidant-system-related enzymes catalase (CAT), peroxidase (POD), ascorbate peroxidase (APX), and superoxide dismutase (SOD), while decreasing the malondialdehyde (MDA) content. These results provide valuable insights into the mechanisms underlying the extended VL of gerbera cut flowers and offer a foundation for developing more effective preservation techniques.

The cryopreservation of Anthurium andraeanum germplasm resources is extremely important for the production and selection of new varieties. At present, the cryopreservation procedure for the callus of A. andraeanum has not been established. In this study, the leaves of A. andraeanum were used as explants to culture the callus. The cryopreservation procedure of the callus by vitrification was initially established by using the orthogonal experimental method of four factors and three levels in the preculture, loading, and dehydration steps. Furthermore, the vitrification-based cryopreservation was optimized by changing the preculture temperature and loading solution and adding exogenous substances to the plant vitrification solution (PVS2). In this procedure, the callus was precultured at 25 °C for 2 d, and loaded in 50% PVS2 at 25 °C for 60 min. The callus was dehydrated with PVS2 containing 0.08 mM reduced glutathione (GSH) at 0 °C for 60 min. After rapid-cooling in liquid nitrogen for 1 h, it was rapid-warming in a water bath at 40 °C for 90 s and unloaded for 30 min. After 1 d of recovery, the cell relative survival rate of the cryopreserved callus was 64.60%. The results provide a valuable basic and effective method for the long-term conservation of A. andraeanum germplasm resources.

Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) has emerged as a powerful framework to overcome the knowledge limitations of Large Language Models (LLMs) by integrating external retrieval with language generation. While early RAG systems based on static pipelines have shown effectiveness in well-structured tasks, they struggle in real-world scenarios requiring complex reasoning, dynamic retrieval, and multi-modal integration. To address these challenges, the field has shifted toward Reasoning Agentic RAG, a paradigm that embeds decision-making and adaptive tool use directly into the retrieval process. In this paper, we present a comprehensive review of Reasoning Agentic RAG methods, categorizing them into two primary systems: predefined reasoning, which follows fixed modular pipelines to boost reasoning, and agentic reasoning, where the model autonomously orchestrates tool interaction during inference. We analyze representative techniques under both paradigms, covering architectural design, reasoning strategies, and tool coordination. Finally, we discuss key research challenges and propose future directions to advance the flexibility, robustness, and applicability of reasoning agentic RAG systems. Our collection of the relevant research has been organized into a https://github.com/ByebyeMonica/Reasoning-Agentic-RAG.

Plant architecture is a critical agronomic trait that directly influences both the ornamental and commercial value of horticultural crops. Spathiphyllum kochii , a perennial evergreen herbaceous plant in the Araceae family, includes a naturally occurring dwarf mutant, Meibian’, which provides a valuable genetic resource for elucidating the molecular mechanisms controlling plant stature. In this study, we constructed a high-quality, full-length reference transcriptome based on the standard cultivar ‘Meijiu’ and its dwarf mutant ‘Meibian’ using PacBio Iso-Seq platforms. De novo assembly yielded 122,346 non-redundant high-confidence transcripts, including 94,809 predicted protein-coding sequences, of which 85,055 (89.71%) were successfully annotated in public databases. Phenotypically, ‘Meibian’ exhibits markedly reduced leaf, petiole, spathe, and spadix size compared to ‘Meijiu’. Transcriptome profiling across these four tissues identified 2,660 differentially expressed genes, with a global trend toward transcriptional repression in the dwarf mutant. Weighted Gene Co-expression Network Analysis revealed a key module significantly correlated with the dwarf phenotype, enriched in cytokinin-responsive genes and negative regulators of molecular functions. Among the hub genes, Spathiphyllum kochii Regulator of Chromosome Condensation 1 ( SpRCC1 ) was identified as a potential key regulator. Full-length cloning confirmed a 2,303 bp coding sequence encoding a conserved RCC1 domain protein localized in the nucleus. Expression analysis showed significantly lower SpRCC1 expression in ‘Meibian’, consistent with transcriptome data. Overexpression of SpRCC1 in Arabidopsis thaliana resulted in increased leaf area, supporting its positive role in promoting growth. This study provides the first functional evidence linking SpRCC1 to plant architecture regulation in Spathiphyllum and establishes a valuable transcriptomic resource for molecular breeding of compact ornamental cultivars.