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Focus on Plant Biotechnology and Molecular Breeding
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Focus on Plant Biotechnology and Molecular Breeding

A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Plant Sciences".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2025 | Viewed by 1661

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Magdalena Wróbel-Kwiatkowska

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Biotechnology and Food Microbiology, Faculty of Biotechnology and Food Sciences, Wrocław University of Environmental and Life Sciences, Chełmońskiego St. 37, 51-630 Wrocław, Poland
Interests: plant transformation; plant tissue cultures; genetic improvement of flax plants; improvement of plant resistance to biotic and abiotic stresses; synthesis of secondary metabolites in plant cultures
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Innovative biotechnology offers the possibility of producing or enhancing desired metabolites, e.g., antioxidants and pharmaceuticals, in plants. Plant biotechnology also generates plants with new properties, especially crops resistant to a changing climate. Climate change and global warming remain currently some of the greatest challenges for science and biotechnology.

This Special Issue aims to collect and present current papers (original research articles or review papers) related to plant biotechnology and molecular breeding, providing insight into the latest research in this field. This includes plant transformation, genetic engineering for plant improvement, crop plant improvement, genome editing, genome sequencing, functional genomics, and plant breeding.

Dr. Magdalena Wróbel-Kwiatkowska
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Molecular Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. There is an Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal. For details about the APC please see here. Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • genetic engineering
  • plant transformation
  • applied biotechnology
  • functional genomics
  • crop plants
  • crop improvement
  • plant tissue cultures
  • secondary metabolites

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

15 pages, 1694 KB  
Communication
Genetic Stability and Photosystem II Functioning of In Vitro-Recovered Lamprocapnos spectabilis (L.) Fukuhara After ZnO + Ag Nanoparticles or Melatonin Exposure During Vitrification—Preliminary Study
by Dariusz Kulus, Alicja Tymoszuk and Mateusz Cichorek
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2025, 26(22), 10817; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms262210817 - 7 Nov 2025
Viewed by 338
Abstract
The success of plant tissue cryopreservation strongly depends on maximizing explant survival during storage in liquid nitrogen and recovery, which requires species-specific protocol optimization and ongoing refinement. This study examined the effect of Plant Vitrification Solution 3 (PVS3) supplemented with nanoparticles (NPs) or [...] Read more.
The success of plant tissue cryopreservation strongly depends on maximizing explant survival during storage in liquid nitrogen and recovery, which requires species-specific protocol optimization and ongoing refinement. This study examined the effect of Plant Vitrification Solution 3 (PVS3) supplemented with nanoparticles (NPs) or melatonin (MEL) on the recovery of Lamprocapnos spectabilis (L.) Fukuhara explants after cryostorage. Treatments with ZnO + Ag NPs, as well as different MEL concentrations, were applied to evaluate their influence on explant survival, photosynthetic efficiency, and genetic stability. The highest recovery (40–44%) was obtained with PVS3 containing 50 mg L−1 ZnO + 0.1% Ag NPs and PVS3 supplemented with 8 mg L−1 MEL, which was 17.5–20% higher than in the control. These treatments, however, did not ensure the highest photosynthetic efficiency of recovered plants. PVS additives likely support recovery by slowing metabolism and reducing oxidative stress, with lower photosynthetic activity suggesting a lag phase in plastid regeneration. Using the Start Codon Targeted (SCoT) marker system, no significant genetic alterations were detected in recovered plants of any tested variant. These findings demonstrate the feasibility of optimizing cryopreservation protocols for L. spectabilis and encourage further research on combined NPs and MEL treatments or alternative nanocarriers. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Focus on Plant Biotechnology and Molecular Breeding)
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29 pages, 3017 KB  
Article
Fungal Biotransformation of Chloroflavanones and Antimicrobial Activity of Parent Compounds and Derived Products
by Agnieszka Krawczyk-Łebek, Tomasz Janeczko, Barbara Żarowska and Edyta Kostrzewa-Susłow
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2025, 26(20), 10138; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms262010138 - 18 Oct 2025
Viewed by 386
Abstract
This study explores the synthesis of chlorine-substituted flavanones and their biotechnologically derived glycosides in order to evaluate how structural modifications influence both antimicrobial activity and pharmacokinetic properties, with attention to issues such as solubility and membrane transport. Four chloroflavanones (2′-, 3′-, 4′-, and [...] Read more.
This study explores the synthesis of chlorine-substituted flavanones and their biotechnologically derived glycosides in order to evaluate how structural modifications influence both antimicrobial activity and pharmacokinetic properties, with attention to issues such as solubility and membrane transport. Four chloroflavanones (2′-, 3′-, 4′-, and 6-chloroflavanone) were synthesized and biotransformed using entomopathogenic fungi to obtain glycosylated derivatives. Antimicrobial activity was assessed against five microbial strains, while pharmacokinetic properties were predicted computationally. Results showed that 4′-chloroflavanone demonstrated the strongest antimicrobial activity, particularly against Gram-positive bacteria Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 29213 and Enterococcus faecalis ATCC 19433. Most compounds unexpectedly promoted Escherichia coli ATCC 25922 growth, except 4′-chloroflavanone and 3′-chloroflavanone 6-O-β-D-(4″-O-methyl)-glucopyranoside. Nearly all compounds exhibited antifungal activity against Candida albicans ATCC 10231. Glycosylation generally reduced antimicrobial potency but improved water solubility and in silico predictions indicate markedly reduced blood–brain barrier permeation and potential P-glycoprotein recognition. Selective chlorine substitution combined with biotechnological glycosylation may offer a route to antimicrobial flavonoids with improved aqueous solubility and favorable predicted pharmacokinetics. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Focus on Plant Biotechnology and Molecular Breeding)
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15 pages, 3138 KB  
Article
The Novel Flax Cultivar Silesia Shows High Morphogenetic Capacity in Tissue Cultures
by Mateusz Lipiński, Kinga Pilarska-Dudziak, Tadeusz Czuj, Anna Prescha, Wojciech Łaba, Katarzyna Skórkowska-Telichowska and Magdalena Wróbel-Kwiatkowska
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2025, 26(18), 8847; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms26188847 - 11 Sep 2025
Viewed by 690
Abstract
The aim of the present study was to evaluate the morphogenetic efficiency of the new flax (Linum usitatissimum L.) cultivar Silesia. The plant material consisted of five ecotypes of Silesia seeds selected by determining the fatty acid composition in individual plants. Thus, [...] Read more.
The aim of the present study was to evaluate the morphogenetic efficiency of the new flax (Linum usitatissimum L.) cultivar Silesia. The plant material consisted of five ecotypes of Silesia seeds selected by determining the fatty acid composition in individual plants. Thus, five ecotypes with different fatty acid compositions were applied for germination, and the resulting seedlings were used for callus induction. The observed in vitro morphogenic response of explants to the used callus induction medium was 100%, followed by varying development of shoots, with the highest value being 17 shoots per callus, with an average length of 7.15 cm (for ecotype 1). The biochemical analyses showed photosynthetic pigments were significantly affected by the tested ecotypes. The main conclusion is that the selection of plant material as a source of tissue cultures is crucial for efficient regeneration and organogenesis. One factor potentially influencing these processes is fatty acid composition and the ratio of linoleic to α-linolenic acid. A ratio ranging from 1.36 to 1.68 in the source material (seeds) used for initiation of tissue cultures resulted in the highest efficiency of shoot regeneration and number of obtained shoots per callus. A strong negative correlation (−0.78) was observed between shoot regeneration efficiency and the ratio of linoleic to α-linolenic acid in seeds from which the explants were obtained. Moreover, an efficient protocol of micropropagation from callus tissue was established for the new flax cultivar Silesia. An interesting insight into the metabolism of the obtained regenerants allowed us to determine the relationship between the content of chlorophyll and rhizogenesis efficiency. For these two parameters, the calculated correlation coefficient was 0.66. A strong relationship (high correlation coefficient: 0.79) was also established between flavonoid content and length of obtained regenerants, pointing to the developmental role of flavonoids. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Focus on Plant Biotechnology and Molecular Breeding)
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