The SARS-CoV-2 Spike Protein Receptor-Binding Domain Expressed in Rice Callus Features a Homogeneous Mix of Complex-Type Glycans.

The spike protein receptor-binding domain (RBD) of SARS-CoV-2 is required for the infection of human cells. It is the main target that elicits neutralizing antibodies and also a major component of diagnostic kits. The large demand for this protein has led to the use of plants as a production platform.

Impact of buried debris from agricultural biodegradable plastic mulches on two horticultural crop plants: Tomato and lettuce.

Biodegradable mulches (BDM) are increasingly valued and used for substituting non-biodegradable plastic mulches polluting agricultural soils. They are tilled into soil, where they fragment and release compounds throughout their biodegradation. The consequences of BDM use on the plant-soil environment have been partially studied with pristine and with artificially-weathered BDM fragments.

Biodegradable plastic mulches: Impact on the agricultural biotic environment.

The increasing use of plastic films for agricultural mulching continues worldwide. Mulching improves crop yield, decreases pesticide' inputs to the field, saves irrigation water and contributes to tackle the food demand for the growing world population. However, plastic mulching results in polyethylene residues that contaminate agricultural soils and contribute to the massive worldwide plastic pollution, a serious environmental concern.

Biodegradable Plastic Mulch Films: Impacts on Soil Microbial Communities and Ecosystem Functions.

Agricultural plastic mulch films are widely used in specialty crop production systems because of their agronomic benefits. Biodegradable plastic mulches (BDMs) offer an environmentally sustainable alternative to conventional polyethylene (PE) mulch. Unlike PE films, which need to be removed after use, BDMs are tilled into soil where they are expected to biodegrade.

Constitutive expression of a barley Fe phytosiderophore transporter increases alkaline soil tolerance and results in iron partitioning between vegetative and storage tissues under stress.

Cereals have evolved chelation systems to mobilize insoluble iron in the soil, but in rice this process is rather inefficient, making the crop highly susceptible to alkaline soils. We therefore engineered rice to express the barley iron-phytosiderophore transporter (HvYS1), which enables barley plants to take up iron from alkaline soils. A representative transgenic rice line was grown in standard (pH 5.

Critical evaluation of strategies for mineral fortification of staple food crops.

Staple food crops, in particular cereal grains, are poor sources of key mineral nutrients. As a result, the world's poorest people, generally those subsisting on a monotonous cereal diet, are also those most vulnerable to mineral deficiency diseases. Various strategies have been proposed to deal with micronutrient deficiencies including the provision of mineral supplements, the fortification of processed food, the biofortification of crop plants at source with mineral-rich fertilizers and the implementation of breeding programs and genetic engineering approaches to generate mineral-rich varieties of staple crops.

Transgenic strategies for the nutritional enhancement of plants.

The nutrients in the human diet ultimately come from plants. However, all our major food crops lack certain essential vitamins and minerals. Although a varied diet provides adequate nutrition, much of the human population, particularly in developing countries, relies on staple crops, such as rice or maize, which does not provide the full complement of essential nutrients.

The genetic manipulation of medicinal and aromatic plants.

Medicinal and aromatic plants have always been intimately linked with human health and culture. Plant-derived medicines constitute a substantial component of present day human healthcare systems in industrialized as well as developing countries. They are products of plant secondary metabolism and are involved in many other aspects of a plant's interaction with its immediate environment.