{
  "abstract": "Background: Tobacco aroma is a complex quality trait shaped by interactions among genotype, developmental progression, and regional environment, yet the transcriptional programs linking ecological context to aroma-related metabolism remain incompletely understood.\n\nMethods: We profiled the transcriptomes of ten Nicotiana tabacum L. cultivars grown in three representative regions and sampled at three developmental stages. Normalized RNA-seq expression, principal component analysis, differential expression analysis, soft clustering, pathway enrichment, gene-expression variability analysis, and protein–protein interaction network analysis were performed.\n\nResults: Growing region was the major source of transcriptomic variation, followed by developmental stage, whereas cultivar effects were comparatively smaller. Leaf maturation from S1 to S3 was associated with repression of photosynthesis and carbon-assimilation pathways and induction of stress responses, redox regulation, cell-wall and membrane remodeling, amino acid metabolism, and secondary metabolism. Aroma-associated processes, including carotenoid-, phenylpropanoid-, and redox-related pathways, showed regiondependent expression patterns. Strong-aroma cultivars exhibited greater transcriptional variability across regions than light-aroma cultivars, suggesting stronger environmental responsiveness of their regulatory networks. Network analysis further highlighted candidate hub genes, including the heat shockrelated protein A0A1S4A548 and peroxiredoxin Q A0A1S4B900, in temperature- and oxidative-stress-related modules.\n\nConclusion: These findings provide a transcriptome-level framework for understanding how environmental context and developmental maturation are associated with aroma-related metabolic reprogramming in tobacco and identify candidate genes for future functional validation.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Technology Center of China Tobacco Hunan Industrial Co. Ltd., CNTC",
    "Beijing Life Science Academy",
    "College of Biology, Hunan University",
    "Hunan Tobacco Research Institute",
    "Yuxi Zhongyan Tobacco Seed Co., Ltd"
  ],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 18,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Xiaoxu Li"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Yilin Wen"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Xinxi He"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        3
      ],
      "name": "Jiashuo Yang"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        4
      ],
      "name": "Guoping Wang"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Yu Peng"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Zhiyuan Li"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Yu Zhao"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Dousheng Wu"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Xiangli Xu"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Wanfeng Liu"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        3
      ],
      "name": "Yangyang Li"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Pingjun Huang"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Junping Gao"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Yirong Wang"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Long Chen"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Xiaonian Yang"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Wenxuan Pu"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/58w1rt80bdbzg.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.3389/fpls.2026.1854430",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "58w1rt80bdbzg",
  "issns": [
    "1664-462X"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpls.2026.1854430/full",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "openalex",
      "1312|Plant biochemistry and biosynthesis"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7223102442",
  "pdf_url": "https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/plant-science/articles/10.3389/fpls.2026.1854430/pdf",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-10-21",
  "publisher": "Frontiers Media SA",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/58w1rt80bdbzg.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:19:25Z",
      "native_id": "10.3389/fpls.2026.1854430",
      "source": "crossref",
      "url": "https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpls.2026.1854430/full"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "biochemistry",
      "origin": "openalex:1312|Plant biochemistry and biosynthesis",
      "subfield": "molecular-biology"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Transcriptional signatures associated with environmental and developmental variation in tobacco aroma-related pathways across cultivars and regions",
  "title_text": "Transcriptional signatures associated with environmental and developmental variation in tobacco aroma-related pathways across cultivars and regions",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:19:25Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/58w1rt80bdbzg",
  "venue": "Frontiers in Plant Science",
  "versions": []
}