Desiccation tolerance—the ability of organisms to withstand severe water loss and subsequently revive—is a key trait acquired by seeds of most plant species during the final stages of development, whe...

Over recent decades, global livestock and aquaculture systems have significantly increased protein production, largely driven by advancements in nutrition, h...

Blastocystis spp., one of the most prevalent microeukaryotes in the human gut, has long puzzled researchers with its ambiguous role in health and disease. Decades-old microscopy studies reported bact...

Japan's snow monkeys soak in hot springs for thermoregulation and to relieve stress – a new study suggests there is another reason...

The plant and its associated microbiota constitute a holobiont. Within this framework, the seed endophyte reservoir, shaped through multigenerational selection, exhibits pronounced host specificity,...

The algal holobiont, a symbiotic association of algae and bacteria, provides strategies to cope with environmental stresses. Bacteria associated with the green alga Ulva (Chlorophyta) are known to pro...

Published in The New phytologist

Japanese macaques at Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park, Nagano, exhibit hot spring bathing behavior (HSBB) during the cold season. HSBB is known to aid thermoregulation and reduce stress, but its impact on ...

The plant and its associated microbiota constitute a holobiont. Within this framework, the seed endophyte reservoir, shaped through multigenerational selection, exhibits pronounced host specificity,.....

Desiccation tolerance—the ability of organisms to withstand severe water loss and subsequently revive—is a key trait acquired by seeds of most plant species during the final stages of development, when their moisture content declines to ~10% of fresh weight (1). Desiccation-tolerant seeds (hereafter seeds for simplicity) survive the removal of cellular water by accumulating protective molecules and forming intracellular glasses, which impose a metabolically inactive state called quiescence (quietus, at rest) (2) (boldface terms are defined in Box 1). Once environmental conditions become favorable, typically after rehydration and in the presence of suitable temperature, light, and oxygen, quiescent seeds resume metabolism and can germinate. However, even under these conducive hydrated conditions, seed germination may still be restricted by endogenous inhibitors (2). This seed trait, which requires additional regulatory mechanisms, is called physiological dormancy (dormire, to sleep) (Box 1).

In classical crop science, improvement and management have traditionally focused on the plant genome and its direct interaction with the abiotic environment. However, the scientific evidence…