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Summary Corn leaf aphids (Rhopalosiphum maidis) are highly destructive pests of maize (Zea mays) that threaten growth and seed yield, but resources for aphid resistance are scarce. Here, we identified an aphid‐resistant maize mutant, resistance to aphids 1 (rta1), which is allelic to LIGULELESS1 (LG1). We confirmed LG1's role in aphid resistance using the independent allele lg1‐2, allelism tests and LG1 overexpression lines. LG1 interacts with, and increases the stability of ZINC‐FINGER PROTEIN EXPRESSED IN INFLORESCENCE MERISTEM (ZIM1), a central component of the jasmonic acid (JA) signalling pathway, by disturbing its interaction with the F‐box protein CORONATINE INSENSITIVE 1a (COI1a). Natural variation in the LG1 promoter was associated with aphid resistance among inbred lines. Moreover, a loss‐of‐function mutant in the LG1‐related gene SPL8 in the dicot Arabidopsis thaliana conferred aphid resistance. This study revealed the aphid resistance mechanism of lg1, providing a theoretical basis and germplasm for breeding aphid‐resistant crops. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Few studies have been conducted on the effect of nonamine groups on the nanopore environment and gas adsorption/separation ability of normal spherical hyper-crosslinked resins. Here, hyper-crosslinked resins (HCP@COOH and HCP@CO), modified with a COOH-containing structure (A) and a CO-containing structure (B), were synthesized by the Friedel–Crafts acylation reaction. According to static adsorption and dynamic separation tests, different oxygen-containing groups have different impacts on the nanopore diameter and small gas adsorption/separation behavior. Structure (A), benefiting from its suitable nanoscale size, was verified to be effective in narrowing the size of nanopores to 1–2 nm and increasing the adsorption capacity of CO2, CH4, and CO, while Structure (B) seems to have a positive influence only on CH4. The uptake of CO2 and the separation ratio of CO2/CO in HCP@COOH reach 32 cm3/g and 12.2, respectively, at 298 K and 1 bar. The IAST selectivity of CH4/CO in HCP@O-1 is up to 3.4, increasing from 1.9 for HCP-1. HCP@COOH can separate syngas efficiently at ambient temperature and can be regenerated by simple vacuum operation. The interaction mechanism was also analyzed by experiments and electrostatic potential simulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT During their co‐evolution with herbivorous insects, plants have developed multiple defense strategies that resist pests, such as releasing a blend of herbivory‐induced plant volatiles (HIPVs) that repel pests or recruit their natural enemies. However, the responses of insects to HIPVs in maize (Zea mays L.) are not well understood. Here, we demonstrate that the Asian corn borer (ACB, Ostrinia furnacalis), a major insect pest of maize, shows a preference for maize pre‐infested with ACB larvae rather than being repelled by these plants. Through combined transcriptomic and metabolomics analysis of ACB‐infested maize seedlings, we identified two substances that explain this behavior: (E)‐4,8‐dimethylnona‐1,3,7‐triene (DMNT) and (3E,7E)‐4,8,12‐trimethyltrideca‐1,3,7,11‐tetraene (TMTT). DMNT and TMTT attracted ACB larvae, and knocking out the maize genes responsible for their biosynthesis via gene editing impaired this attraction. External supplementation with DMNT/TMTT hampered the larvae's ability to locate pre‐infested maize. These findings uncover a novel role for DMNT and TMTT in driving the behavior of ACB. Genetic modification of maize to make it less detectable by ACB might be an effective strategy for developing maize germplasm resistant to ACB and for managing this pest effectively in the field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]