Specific alien plant species predominantly deliver nectar sugar and pollen but are not preferentially visited by wild pollinating insects in suburban riparian ecosystems.

The invasion of alien plants has been rapidly proceeding worldwide due to urbanisation. This might be beneficial to wild pollinating insects, since some alien plant species have large flowers and/or long flowering periods, which can increase nectar sugar and pollen availability. To determine the relative contribution of alien plants to floral resource supply and whether resource-rich alien plants, if any, serve as an important food source of pollinating insects, we performed year-round field observations in suburban riverbanks.

Ectopic expression of mutated type 2C protein phosphatase OsABI-LIKE2 decreases abscisic acid sensitivity in Arabidopsis and rice.

Abscisic acid (ABA) is a phytohormone that is necessary for stress adaptation. Recent studies have reported that attenuated levels of ABA improved grain yield and seedling growth under low temperature in cereals. To improve plant growth under low temperature, we attempted to generate ABA-insensitive transgenic rice by expressing a clade A type 2C protein phosphatase (OsPP2C), OsABIL2, with or without the mutation equivalent to the Arabidopsis abi1-1 mutation.