The excessive accumulation of dimethyl phthalate (DMP) in soil exerts tremendous pressure on soil ecosystems and human health. This study explored the feasibility of using bacterial quorum sensing signal molecules, N-acylhomoserine lactones (AHLs), to enhance phytoremediation of DMP contaminated soil. The effects of N-butyryl-Lhomoserine lactone (C4-HSL) on soybean (Glycine max L.) physiology and phytoremediation efficiency were assessed. Results indicated that C4-HSL significantly promoted the efficiency of soybean in remediating DMP contaminated soil, achieving an 87.40 % DMP removal efficiency after 28 d cultivation. Applying C4-HSL significantly enhanced soybean photosynthetic by the potential promotion of chlorophyll synthesis and bolstered the antioxidant with a notable reduction in malondialdehyde content. The presence of C4-HSL also stimulated plant growth and improved soil enzymatic activities, likely aiding in nutrient cycling and pollutant degradation in soil. Moreover, C4-HSL modified the bacterial community, increasing the relative abundance of bacteria related to DMP degradation (Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria) and plant growth promotion (Micromonosporales, Sphingomonadaceae). In general, this study proposed that AHLs-assisted phytoremediation offers a promising, eco-friendly strategy for DMP remediation. This approach provides economic and ecological benefits while reducing damage to soybeans and lays the groundwork for practical applications in agriculture.

Introduction The residues of clomazone (Clo) can lead to phytotoxic symptoms such as foliar bleaching, reduced plant height, and decreased maize yields. Herbicide safener represent one of the most economically efficient strategies for mitigating herbicide-induced damage.Methods In this study, various seed treatments were implemented, including the immersion of maize seeds in water (CK), immersion in Cyprosulfamide (CSA), soil supplemented with clomazone (ClO) and CSA+ClO, evaluated physiological indicators, chlorophyll content, and qRT-PCR analyses of the maize plants were evaluated under the different treatments.Results and discussion The objective of this study was to investigate the impact of CSA on mitigating residual damage caused by Clo on maize and elucidate its mechanism. Compared to the CK, treatment with Clo resulted in significant inhibition of maize plant height, fresh weight, chlorophyll content, and carotenoid levels by 19.0%, 29.9%, 92.5%, and 86.3% respectively. On the other hand, under CSA+Clo treatment, milder inhibition was observed with reductions of only 9.4% in plant height and 7.2% in fresh weight, as well as decreases of 35.7% and 21.8% respectively in chlorophyll and carotenoid contents. The findings revealed that the application of CSA effectively mitigated the inhibitory effects of Clo residues on maize plant height, fresh weight, carotenoids and chlorophyll content. Additionally, the combination of CSA and Clo reduced MDA levels by 13.4%, increased SOD activity by 9.7% and GST activity by 26.7%, while elevating GSSG content by 31.3% compared to Clo alone, ultimately mitigating oxidative damage in maize plants. qRT-PCR analysis showed that the expression of five P450 genes (CYP72A5, CYP81A4, CYP81Q32, CYP81A9, CYP81A36), nine GST genes (GST30, GST31, GSTIV, GSTVI, GST21, GST7, GST37, GST25, IN2-1), and two UGT genes (UGT76C2, UGT83A1) significantly high increased by 6.74-, 10.27-, 4.98-, 10.56-, 25.67-, 16.70-, 46.92-,7.53-, 5.10-, 238.82-, 143.50-, 4.58-, 31.51-, 39.3-, 4.20-, 10.47-fold after CSA+Clo treatment compared to that in the Clo treatment. The pre-treatment of CSA led to the upregulation of five P450 genes, nine GST genes, and two UGT genes, which may be associated with the metabolism of Clo in maize. Overall, this study suggests that CSA could be effectively mitigates Clo residual damage by up-regulating detoxification-related genes, enhancing chlorophyll content and activities of antioxidant enzymes.

Cadmium contamination can lead to a decrease in crop yield and quality. However, Cd-tolerant rice can improve rice resistance genes, improve crop tolerance to heavy metals, and protect plants from oxidative damage. In this study, Japonica rice: Chunyou 987 and Indica rice: Chuanzhong you 3607 were used to reveal the molecular response mechanism of Cd-tolerant rice under cadmium concentration of 3 mg/kg through comparative experiments combined with physiology and proteomics. The results showed that compared with indica rice, japonica rice showed more robust resistance to Cd stress and effectively retained many Cd ions in roots. Moreover, it enhanced its enzymatic and non -enzymatic anti -oxidative stress mechanism, which increased the activities of catalase (CAT), peroxidase (POD), and superoxide dismutase (SOD) by 47.37%, 21.75%, and 55.42%, respectively. The contents of non -enzymatic antioxidant substances ascorbic acid (AsA), glutathione (GSH), cysteine (Cys), proline (PRO), anthocyanins (OPC), and flavonoids were increased by 25.32%, 42.67%, 21.43%, 50.81%, 33.23%, and 72.16%, respectively. Through proteomics analysis, it was found that in response to the damage caused by cadmium stress, Japonica rice makes Photosynthesis functional proteins (psbO and PetH), Photosynthesis antenna proteins (LHCA and ASCAB9), Carbon fixation functional proteins (PEPC and OsAld), Porphyrin metabolism functional proteins (OsRCCR1 and SE5), Glyoxylate and dicarboxylate The expression of metabolism functional proteins (CATC and GLO4.) and Glutathione metabolism functional proteins (APX8 and OsGSTU13) were significantly up -regulated, which stimulated the antioxidant stress mechanism and photosynthetic system, and constructed a robust energy supply system to ensure the normal metabolic activities of life. Strengthening the mechanisms of plant homeostasis. In summary, this study revealed the molecular mechanism of tolerance to Cd stress in japonica rice, and the results of this study will provide a possible way to improve Cd-resistant rice seedlings.

Salt stress severely limits the growth and yield of wheat in saline-alkali soil. While nanozymes have shown promise in mitigating abiotic stress by scavenging reactive oxygen species (ROS) in plants, their application in alleviating salt stress for wheat is still limited. This study synthesized a highly active nanozyme catalyst known as ZnPB (Zn-modified Prussian blue) to improve the yield and quality of wheat in saline soil. According to the Michaelis-Menten equation, ZnPB demonstrates exceptional peroxidase-like enzymatic activity, thereby mitigating oxidative damage caused by salt stress. Additionally, studies have shown that the ZnPB nanozyme is capable of regulating intracellular Na+ efflux and K+ retention in wheat, resulting in a decrease in proline and soluble protein levels while maintaining the integrity of macromolecules within the cell. Consequently, field experiments demonstrated that the ZnPB nanozyme increased winter wheat yield by 12.15 %, while also significantly enhancing its nutritional quality. This research offers a promising approach to improving the salinity tolerance of wheat, while also providing insights into its practical application.