Front cover image:

A close up of a field of camelina at maturation. The ‘seed pods’ are spherical. The crop at maturation looks like flax and that is why camelina is also called ‘false flax’. The proper botanical term for the seed pods is ‘silicles’ (length/width ratio is smaller than in standard siliques found in Brassicaceae). These siliques contain 10 to 20 small orange/brown seeds.

Photograph by E.N. van Loo, Wageningen University and Research.

Cover illustration refers to the article published in this issue (Belle et al., pp. 1399–1412).

Expression of exochitinase and endochitinase in lettuce highlights the potential of chloroplast genetic engineering for sustainable agriculture and biomedical applications, offering a safer alternative to chemical fertilizers and fungicides.

Structure-based virtual screening aids the identification of glycosyltransferases in the biosynthesis of salidroside.

Through DFT prediction, a highly selective probe, phoxrodam, was identified and successfully used to detect and bioimage the distribution of SA in the roots of wheat seedlings under salt stress.