@article{bizjak-johansson_norway_2026,
	title = {Norway {Spruce} and {Scots} {Pine} {Fungal} and {Bacterial} {Microbiomes} in a {Boreal} {Forest} {Common} {Garden} {Experiment}},
	volume = {17},
	copyright = {http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/},
	issn = {1999-4907},
	url = {https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4907/17/4/446},
	doi = {10.3390/f17040446},
	abstract = {Soil- and plant-associated fungi and bacteria are an important part of many ecosystems as they can affect plant health, growth and stress tolerance. However, it remains poorly understood whether the microbiomes differ between conifer species growing in the same site conditions and between tree ecosystem compartments. The main aim of the study was to describe and compare the microbiomes of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) and Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) H. Karst.), growing in a boreal forest common garden experiment on adjacent forest plots, to analyse the tree species effect on the composition of the needle and surface soil organic-mineral horizon microbiomes. The needle and surface soil organic-mineral horizon bacterial and fungal microbiomes were simultaneously analysed by full-length 16S and ITS sequencing on a long-read sequencing platform; however, the bacterial analysis was restricted to soil samples. The highly abundant bacterial phyla in both pine and spruce soil were Actinomycetota, Pseudomonadota, Planctomycetota and Acidobacteriota. The dominant fungal phyla in pine and spruce surface organic-mineral soil was Basidiomycota, while the needles were dominated by Ascomycota. The results showed an effect of tree species on the soil bacterial and fungal microbiomes and needle fungal microbiomes based on alpha diversity, which was higher for Norway spruce compared to Scots pine. The results indicated that Norway spruce might be able to support higher microbial diversity, which could potentially be due to differences in needle longevity, root exudates, litter input and its degradation, between pine and spruce. Furthermore, the results indicated distinct microbiomes between the soil and needle compartments.},
	language = {en},
	number = {4},
	urldate = {2026-05-06},
	journal = {Forests},
	publisher = {Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute},
	author = {Bizjak-Johansson, Tinkara and Larsson, Marcus and Gundale, Michael J. and Nordin, Annika},
	month = apr,
	year = {2026},
	keywords = {Norway spruce, Scots pine, bacteria, boreal forest, fungi, microbiome},
	pages = {446},
}

Soil- and plant-associated fungi and bacteria are an important part of many ecosystems as they can affect plant health, growth and stress tolerance. However, it remains poorly understood whether the microbiomes differ between conifer species growing in the same site conditions and between tree ecosystem compartments. The main aim of the study was to describe and compare the microbiomes of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) and Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) H. Karst.), growing in a boreal forest common garden experiment on adjacent forest plots, to analyse the tree species effect on the composition of the needle and surface soil organic-mineral horizon microbiomes. The needle and surface soil organic-mineral horizon bacterial and fungal microbiomes were simultaneously analysed by full-length 16S and ITS sequencing on a long-read sequencing platform; however, the bacterial analysis was restricted to soil samples. The highly abundant bacterial phyla in both pine and spruce soil were Actinomycetota, Pseudomonadota, Planctomycetota and Acidobacteriota. The dominant fungal phyla in pine and spruce surface organic-mineral soil was Basidiomycota, while the needles were dominated by Ascomycota. The results showed an effect of tree species on the soil bacterial and fungal microbiomes and needle fungal microbiomes based on alpha diversity, which was higher for Norway spruce compared to Scots pine. The results indicated that Norway spruce might be able to support higher microbial diversity, which could potentially be due to differences in needle longevity, root exudates, litter input and its degradation, between pine and spruce. Furthermore, the results indicated distinct microbiomes between the soil and needle compartments.

@article{wang_recurrent_2026,
	title = {Recurrent sex chromosome turnover mediated by distinct {ARR17} and {PISTILLATA} duplications in willows},
	volume = {27},
	issn = {1474-760X},
	url = {https://doi.org/10.1186/s13059-026-04026-w},
	doi = {10.1186/s13059-026-04026-w},
	abstract = {Sex chromosome turnovers evolve via translocation or duplication of established sex-determining genes, or their replacement by newly evolved ones. Few cases of replacements by new factors have been documented in dioecious plants, but are suspected in Salix, in which both XY and ZW systems occur, with sex-linked regions (SLRs) of different species on various chromosomes. The male-determining genes in XY species’ SLRs are partial duplicates of autosomal ARR17-like genes and regulate the expression of downstream genes involved in stamen development by producing small RNAs that suppress the expression of intact copies.},
	language = {en},
	number = {1},
	urldate = {2026-04-24},
	journal = {Genome Biology},
	author = {Wang, Yuàn and Xue, Zhi-Qing and Zhang, Ren-Gang and Zhu, Zhi-Ying and Hörandl, Elvira and Wang, Xiao-Ru and Mao, Yan-Fei and Charlesworth, Deborah and He, Li},
	month = mar,
	year = {2026},
	keywords = {Pericentromeric regions, Recombination landscape, Salix, Sex chromosome turnovers, Sex determination, Translocation},
	pages = {137},
}

Sex chromosome turnovers evolve via translocation or duplication of established sex-determining genes, or their replacement by newly evolved ones. Few cases of replacements by new factors have been documented in dioecious plants, but are suspected in Salix, in which both XY and ZW systems occur, with sex-linked regions (SLRs) of different species on various chromosomes. The male-determining genes in XY species’ SLRs are partial duplicates of autosomal ARR17-like genes and regulate the expression of downstream genes involved in stamen development by producing small RNAs that suppress the expression of intact copies.

@article{corthals_conserved_2026,
	title = {Conserved molecular signatures of hygrosensory neurons in two dipteran species},
	volume = {21},
	issn = {1932-6203},
	url = {https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0347993},
	doi = {10.1371/journal.pone.0347993},
	abstract = {Small poikilothermic animals like insects rely on environmental sensing for survival. The ability to detect humidity through specialized sensory neurons is particularly critical, allowing them to maintain water balance across diverse environments. While recent studies have identified key receptors associated with humidity sensing, our understanding of the underlying molecular architecture of these sensory systems remains incomplete. Here, we conducted a comparative analysis of single-nucleus transcriptomes of humidity receptor neurons (HRNs) between the vinegar fly Drosophila melanogaster and the yellow fever mosquito Aedes aegypti. We identified 21 shared genes that contribute to the molecular identity of HRNs in both species. These genes encode proteins involved in transcriptional regulation, cellular signalling, enzymatic pathways and cellular organization. Through behavioural analyses, we demonstrate that two of these genes, the serotonin receptor 5-HT7 and the kinesin motor protein Kif19A, are both necessary for humidity-guided behaviours in adult flies. The conservation of these genes between species separated by over 150 million years of evolution suggests shared functional requirements for humidity sensing in dipterans. Our findings provide insights into fundamental principles of sensory neuron organization and offer a framework for understanding how specialized sensory systems evolve and maintain their function.},
	language = {en},
	number = {4},
	urldate = {2026-04-30},
	journal = {PLOS ONE},
	publisher = {Public Library of Science},
	author = {Corthals, Kristina and Giri, Ganesh and Reimegård, Johan and Churcher, Allison and Enjin, Anders},
	month = apr,
	year = {2026},
	keywords = {Behavior, Drosophila melanogaster, Gene expression, Humidity, Marker genes, Neurons, Sensory perception, Serotonin},
	pages = {e0347993},
}

Small poikilothermic animals like insects rely on environmental sensing for survival. The ability to detect humidity through specialized sensory neurons is particularly critical, allowing them to maintain water balance across diverse environments. While recent studies have identified key receptors associated with humidity sensing, our understanding of the underlying molecular architecture of these sensory systems remains incomplete. Here, we conducted a comparative analysis of single-nucleus transcriptomes of humidity receptor neurons (HRNs) between the vinegar fly Drosophila melanogaster and the yellow fever mosquito Aedes aegypti. We identified 21 shared genes that contribute to the molecular identity of HRNs in both species. These genes encode proteins involved in transcriptional regulation, cellular signalling, enzymatic pathways and cellular organization. Through behavioural analyses, we demonstrate that two of these genes, the serotonin receptor 5-HT7 and the kinesin motor protein Kif19A, are both necessary for humidity-guided behaviours in adult flies. The conservation of these genes between species separated by over 150 million years of evolution suggests shared functional requirements for humidity sensing in dipterans. Our findings provide insights into fundamental principles of sensory neuron organization and offer a framework for understanding how specialized sensory systems evolve and maintain their function.

@article{chaudhary_breeding_2026,
	title = {Breeding for climate adaptation: genetic variation and genomic selection for drought response in {Scots} pine},
	volume = {27},
	issn = {1471-2164},
	shorttitle = {Breeding for climate adaptation},
	url = {https://doi.org/10.1186/s12864-026-12849-x},
	doi = {10.1186/s12864-026-12849-x},
	abstract = {Drought intensity and frequency are increasing under global warming in the boreal forests, and breeding for drought resistance will facilitate adaptation of new planting material to changing climate conditions. We used a tree-ring dataset of 559 individuals to study Scots pine genetic variation and the efficiency of genomic selection of drought-response traits (drought resistance, recovery and resilience), for the first time. From genotyping-by-sequencing (GBS), 31,101 SNPs were generated and used for the study.},
	language = {en},
	number = {1},
	urldate = {2026-04-30},
	journal = {BMC Genomics},
	author = {Chaudhary, Rajiv and Estravis Barcala, Maximiliano and Fundova, Irena and Funda, Tomas and Chen, Zhi-qiang and Wu, Harry X.},
	month = apr,
	year = {2026},
	keywords = {Climate adaptation, Dendroecology, Drought, GBS, Genomic selection, Scots pine},
	pages = {416},
}

Drought intensity and frequency are increasing under global warming in the boreal forests, and breeding for drought resistance will facilitate adaptation of new planting material to changing climate conditions. We used a tree-ring dataset of 559 individuals to study Scots pine genetic variation and the efficiency of genomic selection of drought-response traits (drought resistance, recovery and resilience), for the first time. From genotyping-by-sequencing (GBS), 31,101 SNPs were generated and used for the study.

@article{giubilei_clearing_2026,
	title = {Clearing the {Noise}: {Seasonal} {Dynamics} of {Endophytic} {Bacteria} in {Fagus} sylvatica {Leaves} {Revealed} by {Application} of {PNA} {Clamps}},
	volume = {178},
	issn = {1399-3054},
	shorttitle = {Clearing the {Noise}},
	url = {https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/ppl.70897},
	doi = {10.1111/ppl.70897},
	abstract = {The characterization of the seasonal dynamics of endophytic bacteria in beech leaves can be hindered by co-amplification of chloroplast and mitochondrial plant DNA. This study applies established peptide nucleic acid (PNA) clamps to suppress host-derived amplification while resolving bacterial succession across the vegetative season. Chloroplast- and mitochondrion-specific PNAs inverted the proportion of host to bacterial reads, enabled the recovery of bacterial sequence variants, and increased alpha diversity accordingly. Beta-diversity analyses showed that, once host contamination was removed, samples displayed a clear seasonal trajectory. Early-season leaves contained high abundances of Pseudomonas together with taxa likely introduced through plant–insect–microbe interactions. As leaves matured, the microbiome shifted toward a more stable composition dominated by well-established genera. The transition from early transient taxa to the later enrichment of phyllosphere-adapted and nutrient-cycling genera demonstrates that beech leaves host a temporally structured microbiome shaped by leaf development and seasonal environmental stress.},
	language = {en},
	number = {3},
	urldate = {2026-04-27},
	journal = {Physiologia Plantarum},
	author = {Giubilei, Irene and Turco, Silvia and Cardacino, Antonella and Mahawar, Lovely and Albrectsen, Benedicte Riber and Mazzaglia, Angelo},
	year = {2026},
	note = {\_eprint: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/ppl.70897},
	keywords = {Fagus sylvatica, PNA clamps, endophytes, metabarcoding, microbiome},
	pages = {e70897},
}

The characterization of the seasonal dynamics of endophytic bacteria in beech leaves can be hindered by co-amplification of chloroplast and mitochondrial plant DNA. This study applies established peptide nucleic acid (PNA) clamps to suppress host-derived amplification while resolving bacterial succession across the vegetative season. Chloroplast- and mitochondrion-specific PNAs inverted the proportion of host to bacterial reads, enabled the recovery of bacterial sequence variants, and increased alpha diversity accordingly. Beta-diversity analyses showed that, once host contamination was removed, samples displayed a clear seasonal trajectory. Early-season leaves contained high abundances of Pseudomonas together with taxa likely introduced through plant–insect–microbe interactions. As leaves matured, the microbiome shifted toward a more stable composition dominated by well-established genera. The transition from early transient taxa to the later enrichment of phyllosphere-adapted and nutrient-cycling genera demonstrates that beech leaves host a temporally structured microbiome shaped by leaf development and seasonal environmental stress.