Curcuma alismatifolia widely used as an ornamental plant in Thailand and Cambodia. This species of herbaceous perennial from the Zingiberaceae family, includes cultivars with a wide range of colours and long postharvest life, and is used as an ornamental cut flower, as a potted plant, and in exterior landscapes. For further genetic improvement, however, little genomic information and no specific molecular markers are available. The present study used Illumina sequencing and de novo transcriptome assembly of two C. alismatifolia cvs, ‘Chiang Mai Pink’ and ‘UB Snow 701’, to develop simple sequence repeat markers for genetic diversity studies. After de novo assembly, 62,105 unigenes were generated and 48,813 (78.60%) showed significant similarities versus six functional protein databases. In addition, 9,351 expressed sequence tag-simple sequence repeats (EST-SSRs) were identified with a distribution frequency of 12.5% total unigenes. Out of 8,955 designed EST-SSR primers, 150 primers were selected for the development of potential molecular markers. Among these markers, 17 EST-SSR markers presented a moderate level of genetic diversity among three C. alismatifolia cultivars, one hybrid, three Curcuma, and two Zingiber species. Three different genetic groups within these species were revealed using EST-SSR markers, indicating that the markers developed in this study can be effectively applied to the population genetic analysis of Curcuma and Zingiber species. This report describes the first analysis of transcriptome data of an important ornamental ginger cultivars, also provides a valuable resource for gene discovery and marker development in the genus Curcuma.

Increasing crop productivity is our major challenge if we are to meet global needs for food, feed and fuel. Controlling the level of the plant hormones cytokinins is a mean of improving plant productivity. Cytokinin oxidase/dehydrogenase (CKO/CKX) is a major target in this regard because it degrades cytokinins. Here, we describe the synthesis and biological activities of new CKX inhibitors derived mainly from diphenylurea. They were tested on four CKX isoforms from maize and Arabidopsis, where the best compounds showed IC₅₀ values in the 10 ^-8 M concentration range. The binding mode of the most efficient inhibitors was characterized from high-resolution crystal complexed structures. Although these compounds do not possess intrinsic cytokinin activity, we have demonstrated their tremendous potential for use in the plant tissue culture industry as well as in agriculture. We have identified a key substance, compound 19, which increases stress resistance and seed yield in Arabidopsis, but also improves the yield of wheat, barley and rapeseed grains under field conditions. Thus our findings reveal that subtle modulation of cytokinin levels via CKX inhibition can positively affect plant growth, development and yield, and underline the fact that CKX inhibitors truly deserve to attract interest in plant biotechnology and agriculture

In 2017–2018, extensive symptoms of sudden decline and fruit rot were observed on date palms in southern Tunisia. Samples of diseased plants were randomly collected in six localities. Based on morphological identification, Fusarium was the most frequent fungal genus detected. A sequencing of translation elongation factor, calmodulin, and second largest subunit of RNA polymerase II genes was used to identify 63 representative Fusarium strains at species level and investigate their phylogenetic relationships. The main species detected was Fusarium proliferatum, and at a much lesser extent, Fusarium brachygibbosum, Fusarium caatingaense, Fusarium clavum, Fusarium incarnatum, and Fusarium solani. Pathogenicity on the Deglet Nour variety plantlets and the capability to produce mycotoxins were also assessed. All Fusarium species were pathogenic complying Koch’s postulates. Fusarium proliferatum strains produced mainly fumonisins (FBs), beauvericin (BEA), and, to a lesser extent, enniatins (ENNs) and moniliformin (MON). All F. brachygibbosum strains produced low levels of BEA, diacetoxyscirpenol, and neosolaniol; two strains produced also T-2 toxin, and a single strain produced HT-2 toxin. Fusarium caatingaense, F. clavum, F. incarnatum produced only BEA. Fusarium solani strains produced MON, BEA, and ENNs. This work reports for the first time a comprehensive multidisciplinary study of Fusarium species on date palms, concerning both phytopathological and food safety issues.

Commercial micropropagation plays a crucial role in increasing the production of many economically important fruit crops worldwide, including Europe. The focus has been on many woody horticultural species, such as stone and pome fruits, berries, nuts, and palms. This paper presents an updated overview of the European commercial micropropagation landscape, highlighting the countries currently operating in this sector, crop targets, and the distribution of micropropagation companies based on recent survey data. In Europe and the broader Mediterranean basin, Italy, Spain, Türkiye, and Germany emerge as the leading contributors to the large-scale in vitro production of woody fruit species, based on the number of operating commercial companies and efforts to adopt new technology. Despite this progress, several challenges limit the scalability and sustainability of in vitro propagation systems, and their expansion in underrepresented countries. These main issues include species recalcitrance, high labour and infrastructure costs, further improvement of stock maintenance capacity, logistical issues in plantlet shipment, and barriers related to intellectual property rights. To address these challenges, this paper discusses solutions such as utilizing automation and robotics, exploring new compounds to enhance micropropagation rates, and using European funding opportunities. Furthermore, being involved in pan-European cooperation and technology transfer networks is also encouraged. The COST Action 21157 “CopyTree: European Network for Innovative Woody Plant Cloning” is discussed as a practical example of collaboration in harmonizing protocols for woody plant cloning and facilitating knowledge sharing among research groups with varying levels of experience in the field. Future advancements in the micropropagation sector will depend on the investment in automation and innovative technologies, combined with policy alignment with EU standards on a broader international level, and regional development strategies.