Natural variation in STAYGREEN contributes to low-temperature tolerance in cucumber.

Low-temperature (LT) stress threatens cucumber production globally; however, the molecular mechanisms underlying LT tolerance in cucumber remain largely unknown. Here, using a genome-wide association study (GWAS), we found a naturally occurring single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in the STAYGREEN (CsSGR) coding region at the gLTT5.1 locus associated with LT tolerance.

Architecture design of cucurbit crops for enhanced productivity by a natural allele.

Increasing production efficiency is a top priority in agriculture. Optimal plant architecture is the biological basis of dense planting, high crop yield and labour cost savings, and is thus critical for improving agricultural productivity. In cucurbit crops, most species have elongated internodes, but the path to architecture improvement is still not clear.

Targeted creating new mutants with compact plant architecture using CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing by an optimized genetic transformation procedure in cucurbit plants.

Fruits and vegetables in the Cucurbitaceae family contribute greatly to the human diet, for example, cucumber, melon, watermelon and squash. The widespread use of genome editing technologies has greatly accelerated the functional characterization of genes as well as crop improvement. However, most economically important cucurbit plants, including melon and squash, remain recalcitrant to standard Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation, which limits the effective use of genome editing technology.

Adsorption of Ni and Cu Ions from Wastewater by a Silanized Zeolite Produced with a 3-Mercaptopropyl Trimethoxysilane Modification.

Adsorption characteristics of a silanized zeolite for Ni and Cu ions in water solutions were analyzed by SEM, FTIR and XRD techniques. For ion removal, an optimum ratio of 1 g/L silanized zeolite was obtained for adsorbing a Ni and Cu solution. Equilibrium states at 220 and 108 min were reached for the adsorption of Ni and Cu, respectively.