Asma Ayaz

Main conclusion Plant immunity depends on coordinated control of signaling gain, molecular persistence, RNA fate, interorganismal exchange and timely attenuation, defining testable routes to durable disease control. Abstract Plant immunity is often reviewed as a sequence of receptor activation, transcriptional reprogramming, and antimicrobial output. That organization is useful, but it obscures a central mechanistic problem: immune performance depends on coupled control of protein abundance, RNA fate, interorganismal exchange and response termination. Here, we develop an evidence-weighted protein–RNA control-loop framework that is explicitly differentiated from receptor-, proteostasis-, RNA-silencing- and extracellular-vesicle-centered reviews. The framework organizes plant–pathogen interactions around five experimentally tractable control variables: signaling gain, molecular persistence, RNA routing, interorganismal exchange and memory versus cost. We evaluate how pattern-recognition receptors and nucleotide-binding leucine-rich-repeat receptors set signaling gain; ubiquitination, SUMOylation, proteasomal turnover and autophagy determine persistence; RNA-binding proteins, alternative splicing, N⁶-methyladenosine (m⁶A), translation and decay route immune messages; and vesicular or non-vesicular ribonucleoprotein carriers mediate cross-kingdom RNA exchange. For each layer, we distinguish association from physical mechanism, causal perturbation, and crop-level validation. Receptor synergy, resistosome signaling, selected proteolytic circuits and several cross-kingdom RNA interference mechanisms are strongly supported, whereas generalized roles for immune m⁶A, stress-granule routing, vesicle-exclusive RNA transport and durable epigenetic memory remain incompletely demonstrated. The framework yields testable predictions and a stage-gated roadmap for engineered receptors, host- and spray-induced gene silencing, proteostasis or RNA-binding-protein engineering, and multi-omics breeding. Durable resistance should therefore be judged not by maximal defense activation, but by sufficient gain, correct routing, appropriate persistence and timely attenuation with acceptable yield and environmental costs.

Plants rarely encounter environmental stress as a single, steady stimulus. Heat, drought, high evaporative demand, excess light, nutrient limitation, mechanical damage and infection often overlap, creating compound conditions that require rapid coordination among leaves, roots, vascular tissues and meristems. This review develops a mechanistic framework for rapid whole‐plant stress signalling under compound environmental stresses. We propose that acclimation depends on a multi‐speed signalling architecture in which reactive oxygen species, Ca ²⁺ , electrical and hydraulic waves transmit fast systemic information, while hormones, metabolites, redox networks, organelle signals, transcriptional circuits and chromatin states shape specificity, duration and memory. Particular emphasis is placed on stomatal coordination because guard cells integrate the central heat–drought trade‐off between water conservation, evaporative cooling, photosynthesis and defence. The review identifies unresolved questions concerning signal specificity, interaction among fast waves during simultaneous stresses, cell‐type‐specific decoding and the separation of beneficial memory from growth penalty. Finally, it outlines an experimental pipeline combining live biosensors, electrophysiology, vascular imaging, spatial omics, perturbation genetics and crop phenotyping. Linking dynamic signals to physiological outcomes will help convert systemic stress biology into mechanistic principles for climate‐resilient crop design.

Reversible genetic medicines are emerging as controllable alternatives to permanent genome editing by enabling programmable modulation of RNA sequence, transcript abundance, chromatin state, and gene expression without irreversible genomic alteration. However, reversibility is not a single binary property: transient editor exposure, decay of the molecular effect, recovery of cellular function, and clinical capacity to stop, redose, or counteract treatment may diverge. This review therefore distinguishes mechanistic, functional, and clinical reversibility while examining targeted delivery systems for RNA-editing and epigenome-editing therapeutics. Key payloads include ADAR-recruiting oligonucleotides, CRISPR-Cas13 RNA editors, guide RNAs, chemically modified RNAs, editor-encoding mRNAs, dCas9 transcriptional regulators, DNA methylation editors, histone-modifying systems, and CRISPRoff-like platforms. We evaluate extracellular and intracellular delivery barriers, including nuclease degradation, immune recognition, renal clearance, liver uptake, cellular entry, endosomal escape, cytoplasmic release, nuclear localization, chromatin access, editing-window duration, off-target activity, immunogenicity, repeat-dosing feasibility, manufacturing, quality control, potency assays, and regulatory translation. Overall, delivery systems for reversible genetic medicines should be judged by tissue selectivity, functional editing, duration of action, reversibility after treatment withdrawal, safety, manufacturability, and clinical controllability.

Plant metabolism is essential for coordinating growth, development, and defense under changing environmental conditions. Plants continuously adjust their metabolic pathways to balance resource allocation between growth and immune responses. Under stress, metabolic reprogramming redirects energy and resources toward the production of defense compounds and activation of immune signaling pathways. These changes involve complex interactions among primary metabolism, specialised metabolites, and regulatory networks, including calcium signaling, reactive oxygen species, and phytohormones. Advances in metabolomics and multi-omics technologies have improved understanding of the metabolic control of plant immunity; however, knowledge remains fragmented, and an integrated framework linking metabolism, development, and defense is still emerging. This review examines plant immunometabolism by highlighting the dynamic relationships between metabolic networks and immune functions during development and stress. It discusses pathways that influence growth, stress-induced metabolic shifts linked to defense, and how signaling interacts with metabolism. Progress in metabolomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, and computational modeling that supports systems-level analysis of plant metabolism is also summarized. In addition, potential applications in agriculture and biotechnology, including metabolic engineering, genome editing, and metabolomics-based breeding, are considered in relation to crop resilience. By integrating metabolism, signaling, and systems biology, this review provides a broad perspective on how metabolic reprogramming shapes the growth–defense trade-off in plants and outlines future directions for developing climate-resilient crops.

Over the past decade, cellular immunotherapy has emerged as a transformative strategy for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), with dendritic-cell (DC) vaccines, T-cell vaccines, and natural killer (NK)-cell therapies demonstrating distinct mechanisms and clinical potential. DC vaccines capitalize on antigen presentation to prime tumor-specific T-cell responses, showing excellent safety profiles limited mainly to injection-site reactions and flu-like symptoms. While monotherapy has shown limited efficacy, combinations with checkpoint inhibitors or chemotherapy enhance immune activation and survival outcomes. Recent innovations, including neoantigen-loaded, mRNA-electroporated, and exosome-pulsed DCs, demonstrate improved immunogenicity and personalized approaches. T-cell vaccines, designed to activate cytotoxic CD8+ T-cell responses, have been tested across multiple platforms, including peptide-based (MAGE-A3), viral vector (TG4010/MUC1), and mRNA (CV9201/92) formulations. While the phase III MAGRIT trial presented no disease-free survival (DFS) benefit with adjuvant MAGE-A3 vaccination, the TG4010 vaccine improved progression-free survival (PFS; HR 0.66) and overall survival (OS; HR 0.67) in MUC1-positive NSCLC when combined with chemotherapy. Current strategies focus on personalized neoantigen vaccines and KRAS-targeted approaches (e.g., ELI-002), with ongoing phase III trials evaluating their potential in resectable NSCLC. NK-cell therapies have also shown promise, with early trials establishing the feasibility of autologous and allogeneic infusions, while engineered CAR-NK cells enhance tumor-specific targeting. Combination strategies with checkpoint inhibitors significantly improve response rates and PFS, revealing synergies between innate and adaptive immunity. Recent advances include cytokine-enhanced, memory-like NK cells to overcome immunosuppression and “off-the-shelf” products for broader clinical use. Together, these cellular immunotherapies represent a versatile and evolving frontier in NSCLC treatment, with ongoing research optimizing combinations, delivery platforms, and patient selection to maximize therapeutic benefit.

Biogeochemical cycles are fundamental to the functioning of plant–soil systems, driving the availability and transfer of essential nutrients (like carbon (C), nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and sulfur (S)) as well as beneficial elements (like silicon (Si)). These interconnected cycles regulate ecosystem productivity, biodiversity, and resilience, forming the basis of critical ecosystem services. This review explores the mechanisms and dynamics of biogeochemical C, N, P, S, and Si cycles, emphasizing their roles in nutrient/element cycling, plant growth, and soil health, especially in agricultural plant–soil systems. The coupling between these cycles, facilitated mainly by microbial communities, highlights the complexity of nutrient/element interactions and corresponding implications for ecosystem functioning and stability. Human activities including industrial agriculture, deforestation, and pollution disrupt the underlying natural processes leading to nutrient/element imbalances, soil degradation, and susceptibility to climate impacts. Technological advancements such as artificial intelligence, remote sensing, and real-time soil monitoring offer innovative solutions for studying and managing biogeochemical cycles. These tools enable precise nutrient/element management, identification of ecosystem vulnerabilities, and the development of sustainable practices. Despite significant progress, research gaps remain, particularly in understanding the interlinkages between biogeochemical cycles and their responses to global change. This review underscores the need for integrated approaches that combine interdisciplinary research, technological innovation, and sustainable land-use strategies to mitigate human-induced disruptions and enhance ecosystem resilience. By addressing these challenges, biogeochemical processes and corresponding critical ecosystem services can be safeguarded, ensuring the sustainability of plant–soil systems in the face of environmental change.

Nanotechnology has emerged as a transformative field in agriculture, offering innovative solutions to enhance plant growth and resilience against abiotic stresses. This review explores the diverse applications of nanomaterials in agriculture, focusing on their role in promoting plant development and improving tolerance to drought, salinity, heavy metals, and temperature fluctuations. The method classifies nanomaterials commonly employed in plant sciences and examines their unique physicochemical properties that facilitate interactions with plants. Key mechanisms of nanomaterial uptake, transport, and influence on plants at the cellular and molecular levels are outlined, emphasizing their effects on nutrient absorption, photosynthetic efficiency, and overall biomass production. The molecular basis of stress tolerance is examined, highlighting nanomaterial-induced regulation of reactive oxygen species, antioxidant activity, gene expression, and hormonal balance. Furthermore, this review addresses the environmental and health implications of nanomaterials, emphasizing sustainable and eco-friendly approaches to mitigate potential risks. The integration of nanotechnology with precision agriculture and smart technologies promises to revolutionize agricultural practices. This review provides valuable insights into the future directions of nanomaterial R&D, paving the way for a more resilient and sustainable agricultural system.