Search

Precise responses to changes in light quality are crucial for plant growth and development. For example, hypocotyls of shade‐avoiding plants typically elongate under shade conditions. Although this typical shade‐avoidance response (TSR) has been studied in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana), the molecular mechanisms underlying shade tolerance are poorly understood. Here we report that B. napus (Brassica napus) seedlings exhibit dual shade responses. In addition to the TSR, B. napus seedlings also display an atypical shade response (ASR), with shorter hypocotyls upon perception of early‐shade cues. Genome‐wide selective sweep analysis indicated that ASR is associated with light and auxin signaling. Moreover, genetic studies demonstrated that phytochrome A (BnphyA) promotes ASR, whereas BnphyB inhibits it. During ASR, YUCCA8 expression is activated by early‐shade cues, leading to increased auxin biosynthesis. This inhibits hypocotyl elongation, as young B. napus seedlings are highly sensitive to auxin. Notably, two non‐canonical AUXIN/INDOLE‐3‐ACETIC ACID (Aux/IAA) repressor genes, BnIAA32 and BnIAA34, are expressed during this early stage. BnIAA32 and BnIAA34 inhibit hypocotyl elongation under shade conditions, and mutations in BnIAA32 and BnIAA34 suppress ASR. Collectively, our study demonstrates that the temporal expression of BnIAA32 and BnIAA34 determines the behavior of B. napus seedlings following shade‐induced auxin biosynthesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rationally designing advanced electrocatalysts and innovative energy-efficient electrolysis systems for converting carbon dioxide (CO2) into value-added chemicals or fuels is of significance yet challenging. As for the electrochemical CO2 reduction reaction (CO2RR), the electrocatalytic efficiency is largely limited by the CO2 adsorption and activation capability of active sites. Herein, B-doped Bi nanosheet arrays grown on Cu foam are synthesized by a galvanic replacement combined with in situ doping strategy. It was demonstrated that the B dopant could serve as Lewis acid sites for promoting the adsorption of CO2, and more importantly, regulate the electronic structure and crystallinity of Bi nanosheet arrays, and create abundant amorphous/crystalline two-phase interfaces, which boost the CO2RR activity. Moreover, coupling the CO2RR with the thermodynamically more favorable methanol oxidation reaction (replacing the kinetically sluggish oxygen evolution reaction) within a pH-asymmetric electrolysis system could realize highly efficient pair-electrosynthesis of formate with a much-reduced energy consumption compared with a conventional electrochemical CO2RR system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Selective electrochemical reduction of CO 2 into fuels or chemical feedstocks is a promising avenue to achieve carbon-neutral goal, but its development is severely limited by the lack of highly efficient electrocatalysts. Herein, cation-exchange strategy is combined with electrochemical self-reconstruction strategy to successfully develop diethylenetriamine-functionalized mosaic Bi nanosheets (mBi-DETA NSs) for selective electrocatalytic CO 2 reduction to formate, delivering a superior formate Faradaic efficiency of 96.87% at a low potential of -0.8 V RHE . Mosaic nanosheet morphology of Bi can sufficiently expose the under-coordinated Bi active sites and promote the activation of CO 2 molecules to form the OCHO - * intermediate. Moreover, in situ attenuated total reflectance infrared spectra further corroborate that surface chemical microenvironment modulation of mosaic Bi nanosheets via DETA functionalization can improve CO 2 adsorption on the catalyst surface and stabilize the key intermediate (OCHO - *) due to the presence of amine groups, thus facilitate the CO 2 -to-HCOO - reaction kinetics and promote formate formation., (© 2023 Wiley-VCH GmbH.)