High performance transparent conductive cellulose-based nanopaper (TCCNP) with long-term durability is a predominant alternative for the upscale production of next-generation green flexible electronics. Here, dual-layered TCCNP with excellent mechanical robustness and chemical stability was successfully assembled by tight binding between the mussel-inspired polydopamine functionalized nanofibrillated cellulose (PDA@NFC) substrate and the silver nanowire (AgNW) layer. The highly adhesive PDA coatings on the NFC surface uniformly connected AgNW networks and simultaneously soldered the wire-to-wire junctions, thus dramatically increasing the overall electrical conductivity. The as-prepared TCCNP possesses exceptional optoelectronic properties with an optical transmittance of 90.93% at a wavelength of 550 nm and a sheet resistance of 14.2 Ω sq⁻¹. Meanwhile, the TCCNP displays excellent mechanical stability with negligible changes in optoelectronic performances even after 1000 bending cycles and 100 peeling tests. Furthermore, the TCCNP exhibits outstanding air and chemical corrosion stabilities after being exposed to air for 150 days or immersed in different solutions for 180 min, and its transparent conductive performance remains constant close to its initial values, which is superior to those of NFC–AgNW TCCNP without PDA or the commercial ITO/PET transparent conductive films (TCFs). More importantly, the ease of disposal of TCCNP and its good stability can greatly contribute to its application in multifunctional electronic and photoelectric flexible devices.

LHY (late elongated hypocotyl) is an important gene that regulates and controls biological rhythms in plants. Additionally, LHY is highly expressed in the SSH (suppression subtractive hybridization) cDNA library-induced stripe rust pathogen (CYR32) in our previous research. To identify the function of the LHY gene in disease resistance against stripe rust, we used RACE-PCR technology to clone TaLHY in the wheat variety Chuannong19. The cDNA of TaLHY is 3085 bp long with an open reading frame of 1947 bp. TaLHY is speculated to encode a 70.3 kDa protein of 648 amino acids , which has one typical plant MYB-DNA binding domain; additionally, phylogenetic tree shows that TaLHY has the highest homology with LHY of Brachypodium distachyon(BdLHY-like). Quantitative fluorescence PCR indicates that TaLHY has higher expression in the leaf, ear and stem of wheat but lower expression in the root. Infestation of CYR32 can result in up-regulated expression of TaLHY, peaking at 72 h. Using VIGS (virus-induced gene silencing) technology to disease-resistant wheat in the fourth leaf stage, plants with silenced TaLHY cannot complete their heading stage. Through the compatible interaction with the stripe rust physiological race CYR32, Chuannong 19 loses its immune capability toward the stripe rust pathogen, indicating that TaLHY may regulate and participate in the heading of wheat, as well as the defense responses against stripe rust infection.

Salicylic acid (SA) is considered to play an important role in plant responses to environmental stresses. However, the detailed protective mechanisms in photosynthesis are still unclear. We therefore explored the protective roles of SA in photosystem II (PSII) in Arabidopsis thaliana under high light. The results demonstrated that 3 h of high light exposure resulted in a decline in photochemical efficiency and the dissipation of excess excitation energy. However, SA application significantly improved the photosynthetic capacity and the dissipation of excitation energy under high light. Western blot analysis revealed that SA application alleviated the decrease in the levels of D1 and D2 protein and increased the amount of Lhcb5 and PsbS protein under high light. Results from photoinhibition highlighted that SA application could accelerate the repair of D1 protein. Furthermore, the phosphorylated levels of D1 and D2 proteins were significantly increased under high light in the presence of SA. In addition, we found that SA application significantly alleviated the disassembly of PSII-LHCII super complexes and LHCII under high light for 3 h. Overall, our findings demonstrated that SA may efficiently alleviate photoinhibition and improve photoprotection by dissipating excess excitation energy, enhancing the phosphorylation of PSII reaction center proteins, and preventing the disassembly of PSII super complexes.

To investigate the evolutionary differences of wheat with different ploidy levels and octoploid Triticale, photosynthetic capacity, and antioxidant defenses system were compared within and between diploid, tetraploid and hexaploid wheat, and octoploid Triticale seedlings. The results showed that seed germination rate, chlorophyll content, and photochemical activity of photosystems, and the activities of antioxidative enzymes in hexaploid wheat and octoploid Triticale were significantly higher than in diploid and tetraploid wheat. Compared to other two wheat species and octoploid Triticale, hexaploid wheat presented lower levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Furthermore, we found that the levels of photosystem II reaction center protein D1, light-harvesting complex II b4 (CP29), and D subunit of photosystem I (PsaD) in diploid wheat were significantly lower compared with hexaploid wheat and octoploid Triticale. Taken together, we concluded that hexaploid wheat and octoploid Triticale have higher photosynthetic capacities and better antioxidant systems. These findings indicate that different ploidy levels of chromosome probably play an important regulatory role in photosystems and antioxidative systems of plants.

Stripe rust, a highly destructive foliar disease of wheat (Triticum aestivum), causes severe losses, which may be accompanied by reduced photosynthetic activity and accelerated leaf senescence. We used suppression subtractive hybridization (SSH) to examine the mechanisms of resistance in the resistant wheat line L693 (Reg. No. GP-972, PI 672538), which was derived from a lineage that includes a wide cross between common and Thinopyrum intermedium. Sequencing of an SSH cDNA library identified 112 expressed sequence tags. In silico mapping placed one of these tags [GenBank: JK972238] on chromosome 1A. Primers based on [GenBank: JK972238] amplified a polymorphic band, which co-segregated with YrL693. We cloned a candidate gene encoding wheat copper-binding protein (WCBP1) by amplifying the polymorphic region, and we mapped WCBP1 to a 0.64 cM genetic interval. Brachypodium, rice, and sorghum have genes and genomic regions syntenic to this region. Sequence analysis suggested that the resistant WCBP1 allele might have resulted from a deletion of 36-bp sequence of the wheat genomic sequence, rather than direct transfer from Th. intermedium. qRT-PCR confirmed that WCBP1 expression changes in response to pathogen infection. The unique chromosomal location and expression mode of WCBP1 suggested that WCBP1 is the putative candidate gene of YrL693, which was involved in leaf senescence and photosynthesis related to plant responses to stripe rust infection during the grain-filling stage.