Newcastle disease virus (NDV) is a highly lethal and contagious viral pathogen, and it is also a potent oncolytic virus that selectively replicates in tumor cells.  NDV demonstrates high replication efficiency in avian and tumor cells, causing various types of cell death, including ferroptosis, necrosis, apoptosis and autophagic cell death, with apoptosis being the most thoroughly studied.  Organelles play critical and distinctive roles in the regulation and execution of apoptosis.  However, the involvement of peroxisomes, an important organelle that regulates redox balance and lipid biosynthesis, in virus-induced apoptosis remains unclear.  Our findings reveal that NDV infection promotes the downregulation of several peroxisome biogenesis factors (PEXs) at the mRNA level.  Peroxisomal biogenesis factor 5 (PEX5), a critical peroxisomal shuttle protein, was identified to be significantly downregulated at both the mRNA and protein levels.  Further, gain- and loss-of-function experiments demonstrated the negative regulation of NDV-induced apoptosis by PEX5.  In addition, PEX5 inhibits NDV-induced apoptosis by regulating the anti-apoptotic protein B-cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2) expression.  These findings reveal a novel mechanism by which NDV-induced apoptosis is modulated through the downregulation of PEXs, particularly PEX5, shedding light on the potential role of peroxisome in apoptosis regulation in response to virus infection.

Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) quality is a major focus of wheat breeding, which is influenced by multiple factors. The Huang-Huai wheat region, one of the main wheat-producing areas in China, provides favourable conditions for cultivating wheat cultivars with strong-gluten and medium-strong-gluten. In this study, a systematic assessment of seven crucial quality traits and important genetic loci (Glu-1 and Sec-1) in 436 wheat cultivars in the Huang-Huai wheat region of China by principal component analysis (PCA) and fuzzy comprehensive evaluation (FCE) methods showed that the stability time (ST), stretch area (SA), and maximum resistance (MAXR) were identified as three key factors, which significantly influenced wheat quality. Glu-1 and Sec-1 primarily impacted these three traits and subsequently influenced wheat quality. Compared to Glu-A1 and Glu-B1, Glu-D1 has a more significant impact on the comprehensive evaluation value D, principal components PC1-PC3, and the main traits ST, SA and MAXR of PC1. Wheat cultivars carrying the high-molecular-weight glutenin subunit (HMW-GS) Dx5+Dy10 exhibited a notable improvement in ST, SA, and MAXR traits compared with those carrying HMW-GS Dx2+Dy12, suggesting that Dx5+Dy10 may enhance wheat quality by improving ST, SA, and MAXR. By combining the results of D value, GYT (genotype by yield×trait) index, and HMW-GS score, 20 high-quality and high yield wheat cultivars were identified, which can be used as elite parents for wheat quality breeding.

Seed germination, which initiates the plant life cycle, exhibits high sensitivity to salt stress, a significant environmental factor limiting rice production.  Brassinosteroid (BR), a growth-promoting phytohormone, mitigates various stresses including salt, drought, and extreme temperatures in rice.  However, the mechanisms by which BR alleviates salt stress during seed germination remain inadequately characterized.  This study demonstrates that seed-specific overexpression of OsDWF4, a rate-limiting gene in BR biosynthesis, enhances rice germination.  The DWF4-OX lines, which increase endogenous BR content in seeds, promote germination under salt stress, corroborating results obtained through exogenous BR application.  Antioxidant enzyme analyses demonstrate that BR enhances the activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), peroxidase (POD), and catalase (CAT).  Metabolomic analysis reveals that BR mitigates salt stress primarily through the biosynthesis of phenylpropanoids and secondary metabolites.  Transcriptomic analysis indicates that both endogenous and exogenous BR share five co-regulated target genes and utilize a common biosynthetic pathway for stilbenoids, diarylheptanoids, and gingerols.  These findings confirm BR's capacity to enhance seed germination under salt stress and identify several BR-mediated targets for developing salt-tolerant rice varieties suitable for direct seeding cultivation.

Genetic diversity is crucial to genetic research and crop breeding, and core collections are important resources for capturing this diversity.  Recently, the core germplasm of tea plants was constructed mainly based on phenotypic data or molecular markers; however, the effective construction of core germplasm resources for plant breeding programs requires consideration of multiple aspects.  In this study, we collected 320 tea germplasm resources and analyzed their single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and metabolite data.  Abundant genetic diversity in tea plants was inferred from the mean values of observed heterozygosity (Ho=0.340), expected heterozygosity (He=0.327), minor allele frequency (MAF=0.229), and polymorphic information content (PIC=0.268), based on the data from 2,118,060 high-quality SNP markers.  A mean genetic diversity index (H´) value of 1.902 suggested significant metabolic variation.  The 320 tea samples were categorized into six groups based on phylogenetic analysis, reflecting the influence of geographical origins on genetic diversity.  Based on the genetic and metabolic data, a preliminary core collection of 106 accessions was developed to effectively represent most of the original panel’s molecular, metabolic, population, and regional diversity.  Genome-wide association studies of the core panel successfully replicated the marker-trait associations found in the original panel.  This study contributes to the conservation and management of tea plant germplasm.

High yield remains the primary objective of peanut breeding.  Key yield components, 100-pod weight (HPW), 100-seed weight (HSW), and shelling percentage (SP), are critical determinants of overall productivity.  This study aimed to construct a high-density linkage map using resequencing data from recombinant inbred lines (RILs) derived from a cross between ‘Silihong’ (Arachis hypogaea var. fastigiate) and ‘Jinonghei 3’ (A. hypogaea var. hypogaea).  The resulting map comprised 4,499 bins distributed across 20 chromosomes, spanning a total length of 1,712.32 cM with an average inter-marker distance of 0.38 cM.  A total of 46 quantitative trait loci (QTLs) were identified across three environments.  Major QTLs, including qHPW5.2, qHPW18.1, qSP7.1, qSP8.1, qSP8.2, qSP18.1, and qSP18.2, explained phenotypic variation (PVE) of 12.04, 11.41, 16.53, 24.17, 10.49, 10.82, and 29.89%, respectively.  Fourteen QTLs detected across multiple environments were considered stable.  Notably, one QTL region (qHPW7, qHSW7.1, and qSP7) was associated with all three traits, accounting for PVE values of 8.91, 9.04, and 16.53% for HPW, HSW, and SP, respectively.  To validate the accuracy of QTL mapping, a genome-wide association study (GWAS) was conducted using the US mini-core collection.  Across two environments, 115 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were significantly associated with HPW, HSW, and SP in the association panel.  Six SNPs were linked to two traits, explaining an average phenotypic variation of 13.84%.  Integration of both mapping populations revealed that AX-176802178, detected on chromosome 7 in the association panel and associated with SP, was located within the confidence interval of QTL qSP7 defined by the recombined inbred lines (RIL) population.  Furthermore, three KASP markers were developed and validated in peanut landraces and cultivated varieties.  These findings provide valuable insights into the genetic architecture underlying HPW, HSW, and SP, and offer useful molecular tools for marker-assisted selection in peanut breeding programs.

Recent studies have shown that lipid metabolism is a key factor affecting anther development and male fertility.  However, how plants regulating the metabolic balance of multiple lipids to ensure proper anther development and male fertility remains unclear.  Analyzing lipid molecules related to anther fertility and genes responsible for their biosynthesis is crucial for understanding the physiological significance of lipid metabolism in crop fertility.  In this study, we compared the transcriptome and the composition and content of lipids in anthers of two upland cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) materials, Shida 98 (WT) and its nearly-isogenic male sterile line Shida 98A (MS).  Transcriptomics analysis identified many differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between the two materials, with the genes of the alpha-linolenic acid metabolism pathway being the most significantly associated with the male sterility phenotype.  Investigations on lipids revealed that the MS anthers over-accumulated free fatty acids (FFAs), phosphatidic acid (PA), mono- and di-galactosyldiacylglycerol (MGDG and DGDG), and had a decreased content of triacylglycerol (TAG), which was closely related to the abnormal metabolism of alpha-linolenic acid (C18:3); therefore, the major lipids containing C18:3-acyl chains, such as PA, MGDG, DGDG, and TAG, are proposed to play a major role in cotton anther development.  We also showed that an excessive level of MGDG and DGDG caused jasmonic acid (JA) overaccumulation in MS anthers, which in turn inhibited the expression of GhFAD3 and consequently reduced the C18:3 content, presumably via a feedback regulation mechanism, ultimately affecting plant fertility.  Together, our results revealed the importance of a balanced lipid metabolism in regulating the development of cotton anther and pollen and consequently male fertility.

Intervention strategies to control non-point source nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) pollution in agriculture are expensive and there is a trade-off between engineering cost and treatment effectiveness.  Implementing strategies often result in unsatisfactory outcomes and massive engineering costs when managing diffusive pollution in agricultural catchments.  To address this issue, this paper proposes a robust, handy, catchment N&P decision support system (CNPDSS), an Android-based smartphone system integrated with a web-based geographic information system (GIS).  The CNPDSS aims to provide artificial intelligence-driven decisions that minimize N&P loadings and engineering costs for mitigating pollution in agricultural catchments.  It consists of four components: a general user interface (GUI), GIS, N&P pollution modeling (NPPM), and a DSS.  The CNPDSS simplifies the GUI and integrates GIS modules to create a user-friendly interface, enabling non-professional users to operate the system easily through intuitive actions.  The NPPM uses straightforward empirical models to predict N&P loadings, enhancing efficiency by avoiding excessive parameters.  Taking into account the N&P movement pathway in the catchment, the DSS incorporates three control measures: source reduction in farmland (before migration stage), process retention by ecological ditch (midway transport stage), and down-end purification by constructed wetland (waterbody discharge stage), to formulate a comprehensive ternary controlling strategy.  To optimize the cost-effectiveness of any proposed N&P control strategies for sub-catchments, a differential evolution algorithm (DEA) is employed in CNPDSS to carry out a dual-objective decision-making optimization computation.  In this study, the CNPDSS is applied to a case study in an agricultural catchment in Central China to develop the most cost-effective ternary N&P control strategies that ensure the catchment water quality within Criterion III of the Chinese Surface Water Quality Standard GB3838-2002 is met (total N concentration≤1.0 mg L⁻¹ and total P concentration≤0.2 mg L⁻¹).  Our results demonstrate that the CNPDSS is feasible and also possesses an adaptive design and flexible architecture to enable its generalization and extension to support strong hands-on applications in other catchments.

Flower and fruit abscission reduce crop yield, so decreasing abscission is a significant agricultural issue.  HAESA (HAE) and HAESA-like2 (HSL2) kinases and their ligand, INFLORESCENCE DEFICIENT IN ABSCISSION (IDA) peptide, have been confirmed to be the core elements regulating floral organ abscission in Arabidopsis thaliana.  Our earlier research revealed that SlIDL6, a homolog of IDA in tomato, functions similarly to AtIDA, regulating the abscission of tomato flower organs.  Here, we further isolated three HAESA-like homologs, SlHSL1/2/3, which are involved in tomato flower abscission.  SlHSL1/2/3 are highly expressed in the abscission zone (AZ).  The knockout mutant lines of Slhsl1, Slhsl2, and Slhsl3 showed lower flower pedicel abscission than wild type (WT).  The double mutant of Slhsl1Slhsl2, Slhsl1Slhsl3, and Slhsl2Slhsl3 further depressed abscission than each of the single mutant lines, while triple mutants Slhsl1Slhsl2Slhsl3 exhibited the lowest abscission, indicating that SlHSL1/2/3 mediated abscission is non-redundancy, at least partially.  Treating tomato pedicel explants with SlIDL6 peptide significantly accelerated pedicel abscission in WT.  However, it had little effect on the abscission rate of SlHSL1/2/3 knockout lines, indicating that SlHSL1/2/3 are the receptors of SlIDL6 in pedicel abscission.  Ethylene action inhibitor 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP) can significantly depress the expression of SlHSL1/2/3.  Ethylene can significantly accelerate the abscission of WT, while less abscission was found in SlHSL1/2/3 knockout lines.  Our findings indicate that SlHSL1/2/3 can act as receptors for SlIDL6 to positively regulate tomato pedicel abscission, and the abscission regulated by SlHSL1/2/3 was partially dependent on ethylene

Leaves and glumes act as lateral organs and have essential effects on photosynthesis and seed morphology, thus affecting yield.  However, the molecular mechanisms controlling their polarity development in rice still need further study.  Here, we isolated a polarity defect of lateral organs 1 (pdl1) mutant in rice, which exhibits twisted/filamentous-shaped leaves and cracked/filamentous-shaped lemmas caused by defects in polarity development.  PDL1 encodes a SUPPRESSOR OF GENE SILENCING 3 protein localized in the cytoplasmic granules.  PDL1 is expressed in the shoot apical meristem, inflorescence meristem, floral meristem, and lateral organs including leaves and floral organs.  PDL1 is involved in the synthesis of tasiR-ARF, which may subsequently modulate the expression of OsARFs.  Meanwhile, the expression levels of abaxial miR165/166 and the adaxial identity genes OSHBs were respectively increased and reduced significantly.  The results of this study clarify the molecular mechanism by which PDL1-mediated tasiR-ARF synthesis regulates the lateral organ polarity development in rice.

Pepper fruit is highly favored for its spicy taste, diverse flavors, and significant nutritional benefits.  The proper development of flowers and fruits directly determines the quality of pepper fruit.  The YABBY gene family exhibits diverse functions in growth and development, which is crucial to the identity of flower organs.  However, the specific functions of these genes in pepper remain unclear.  In this study, nine CaYABBY genes were identified and characterized in pepper.  Most CaYABBY genes were highly expressed in reproductive organs, albeit with varying expression patterns.  The CaYABBY5 gene, uniquely expressed in petals and carpels, has been demonstrated to modulate floral organ determinacy and fruit shape through gene silencing in pepper and ectopic expression in tomato.  Protein interaction analysis revealed an interacting protein SEPALLATA3-like protein (SEP3), exhibiting a similar expression profile to CaYABBY5.  These findings suggest that CaYABBY5 may modulate the morphogenesis of floral organs and fruits by interacting with CaSEP3.  This study provided valuable insights into the classification and function of CaYABBY genes in pepper.

Peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) bacterial wilt (BW) is a devastating soil-borne disease caused by Ralstonia solanacearum (RS) that poses a significant threat to peanut yield and quality.  Nucleotide-binding leucine-rich repeat (NBS-LRR) proteins are a class of plant-specific immune receptors that recognize pathogen-secreted effector molecules and activate immune responses to resist pathogen infections.  However, the precise functions of AhCN genes (where CN is a class of nucleotide-binding site, leucine-rich repeat receptor (NLR) genes that lack LRR structural domains) in peanut plants are not fully understood.  In this study, a total of 150 AhCN genes were identified and classified into nine subfamilies based on a systematic phylogenetic analysis.  The AhCN genes showed highly conserved structural features, and the promoter cis-elements indicated involvement in plant hormone signaling and defense responses.  After inoculation with RS, the highly resistant peanut variety ‘H108’ significantly outperformed the susceptible variety ‘H107’ based on physiological indicators such as plant height, main stem diameter, and fresh weight, likely due to the inhibition of bacterial proliferation and diffusion in the stem vascular bundle.  AhCN34 was found to be significantly upregulated in ‘H108’ compared to ‘H107’ during plant infection and in response to treatments with each of three plant hormones.  Importantly, AhCN34 overexpression in peanut leaves enhanced their resistance to BW.  These findings demonstrate the great potential of AhCN34 for applications in peanut resistance breeding.  Our identification and characterization of the AhCN genes provide insights into the mechanisms underlying BW resistance in peanut and can inform future research into genetic methods of improving BW resistance in peanut.

Tillage practices during the fallow period benefit water storage and yield in dryland wheat crops.  However, there is currently no clarity on the responses of soil organic carbon (SOC), total nitrogen (TN), and available nutrients to tillage practices within the growing season.  This study evaluated the effects of three tillage practices (NT, no tillage; SS, subsoil tillage; DT, deep tillage) over five years on soil physicochemical properties.  Soil samples at harvest stage from the fifth year were analyzed to determine the soil aggregate and aggregate-associated C and N fractions.  The results indicated that SS and DT improved grain yield, straw biomass and straw carbon return of wheat compared with NT.  In contrast to DT and NT, SS favored SOC and TN concentrations and stocks by increasing the soil organic carbon sequestration rate (SOC_SR) and soil nitrogen sequestration rate (TN_SR) in the 0–40 cm layer.  Higher SOC levels under SS and NT were associated with greater aggregate-associated C fractions, while TN was positively associated with soluble organic nitrogen (SON).  Compared with DT, the NT and SS treatments improved soil available nutrients in the 0–20 cm layer.  These findings suggest that SS is an excellent practice for increasing soil carbon, nitrogen and nutrient availability in dryland wheat fields in North China.

Parasitoids are key regulators in ecological communities and widely used as agents in biocontrol programmes.  The fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda, recently invaded multiple continents and caused substantial economic losses in agriculture.  Pyemotes zhonghuajia, a newly identified mite parasitoid, has shown potential for controlling various agricultural insect pests.  Therefore, this study tested the performance of P. zhonghuajia in parasitising S. frugiperda.  We also investigated the sublethal effects of parasitism by P. zhonghuajia on host fitness traits, transgenerational impacts, and cellular and humoral immunity.  Our result showed that the fifth-instar larvae of S. frugiperda parasitised by 40 P. zhonghuajia were all dead (i.e., a lethal effect), while parasitism by 5 or 10 P. zhonghuajia was considered sublethal since many S. frugiperda survived to adulthood and produced offspring after mating.  The sublethal influences from parasitism by P. zhonghuajia resulted in reduced pupal weight, adult emergence rate and fecundity, but increased developmental time and longevity.  Parasitism at both lethal (40 mites) and sublethal (10 mites) levels impaired the cellular and humoral immunity of S. frugiperda.  This study presents the first empirical evidence that mite parasitoids can negatively influence host immunity.  Moreover, it provides insights into the biocontrol potential of mite parasitoids and their interactions with hosts.

Grain weight is one of the key components of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) yield.  Genetic manipulation of grain weight is an efficient approach for improving yield potential in breeding programs.  A recombinant inbred line (RIL) population derived from a cross between W7268 and Chuanyu 12 (CY12) was employed to detect quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for thousand-grain weight (TGW), grain length (GL), grain width (GW), and the ratio of grain length to width (GLW) in six environments.  Seven major QTLs, QGl.cib-2D, QGw.cib-2D, QGw.cib-3B, QGw.cib-4B.1, QGlw.cib-2D.1, QTgw.cib-2D.1 and QTgw.cib-3B.1, were consistently identified in at least four environments and the best linear unbiased estimation (BLUE) datasets, and they explained 2.61 to 34.85% of the phenotypic variance.  Significant interactions were detected between the two major TGW QTLs and three major GW loci.  In addition, QTgw.cib-3B.1 and QGw.cib-3B were co-located, and the improved TGW at this locus was contributed by GW.  Unlike other loci, QTgw.cib-3B.1/QGw.cib-3B had no effect on grain number per spike (GNS).  They were further validated in advanced lines using Kompetitive Allele Specific PCR (KASP) markers, and a comparison analysis indicated that QTgw.cib-3B.1/QGw.cib-3B is likely a novel locus.  Six haplotypes were identified in the region of this QTL and their distribution frequencies varied between the landraces and cultivars.  According to gene annotation, spatial expression patterns, ortholog analysis and sequence variation, the candidate gene of QTgw.cib-3B.1/QGw.cib-3B was predicted.  Collectively, the major QTLs and KASP markers reported here provide valuable information for elucidating the genetic architecture of grain weight and for molecular marker-assisted breeding in grain yield improvement.

Ammonia (NH₃) emissions should be mitigated to improve environmental quality.  Croplands are one of the largest NH₃ sources, they must be managed properly to reduce their emissions while achieving the target yields.  Herein, we report the NH₃ emissions, crop yield and changes in soil fertility in a long-term trial with various fertilization regimes, to explore whether NH₃ emissions can be significantly reduced using the 4R nutrient stewardship (4Rs), and its interaction with the organic amendments (i.e., manure and straw) in a wheat–maize rotation.  Implementing the 4Rs significantly reduced NH₃ emissions to 6 kg N ha^–1 yr^–1 and the emission factor to 1.72%, without compromising grain yield (12.37 Mg ha^–1 yr^–1) and soil fertility (soil organic carbon of 7.58 g kg^–1) compared to the conventional chemical N management.  When using the 4R plus manure, NH₃ emissions (7 kg N ha^–1 yr^–1) and the emission factor (1.74%) were as low as 4Rs, and grain yield and soil organic carbon increased to 14.79 Mg ha^–1 yr^–1 and 10.09 g kg^–1, respectively.  Partial manure substitution not only significantly reduced NH₃ emissions but also increased crop yields and improved soil fertility, compared to conventional chemical N management.  Straw return exerted a minor effect on NH₃ emissions.  These results highlight that 4R plus manure, which couples nitrogen and carbon management can help achieve both high yields and low environmental costs.

Wheat grain morphology is an important breeding target considering its impact on yield and end-use properties.  However, the genetic basis of grain roundness, a major determinant of grain morphology, remains largely unexplored.  In this study, an F₂ and a recombinant inbred line (RIL) populations from Zhongkemai 138 (ZKM138)×Chinese Spring (CS) cross were employed to analyze the genetic basis of grain shape variation.  Kompetitive Allele Specific PCR (KASP) markers were developed according to single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) from bulked segregant exome sequencing (BSE-Seq) of F₂ and Wheat 55K SNP array data online, and then were used to construct two genetic maps of F₂ and RIL populations, spanning 148.89 cM (30 KASP markers) and 129.82 cM (25 KASP markers), respectively.  By the traditional QTL mapping method based on these two maps, a stable quantitative trait locus (QTL) for grain roundness (GR), QGr.cib-5A, could be repeatedly highlighted in the interval of 444.8-455.5 Mb on chromosome 5A.  Further conditional QTL mapping analysis revealed that grain width was the major contributor to GR at this locus.  Besides, the utilization of two tightly linked markers 5A4-15 and 55k-31 showed a 96.27% transmissibility of ZKM138-derived alleles in 134 ZKM138 derivatives alongside a 7.38% increase in GR, and a 65.19% distribution of worldwide varieties.  Finally, TraesCS5A02G236400, possibly encoding a hydroxyproline-rich glycoprotein family protein, was deduced to be the candidate gene.  Collectively, these results provided the possibility of facilitating wheat grain shape improvement and enhancing wheat market value.

Leaf rust is a highly destructive foliar disease in wheat, causing major constraints in wheat production worldwide.  In this study, we conducted a comprehensive assessment of adult plant resistance to leaf rust in 590 accessions from the advanced backcross-nested association mapping plus inter-crossed (AB-NAMIC) population. We used 660K genotype data to perform a genome-wide association study (GWAS), identifying significant quantitative trait loci (QTLs) on chromosomes 1B, 2A, 2B, and 7D, with particular emphasis on the candidate gene TaRLK-1B on chromosome 1B.  A cleaved amplified polymorphic sequence (CAPS) marker was developed based on TaRLK-1B haplotypes and effectively differentiated between resistant and susceptible varieties.  This gene encodes a membrane-localized leucine-rich repeat receptor-like kinase (LRR-RLK) that is upregulated in response to the fungal infection that causes leaf rust.  Targeted knockout of TaRLK-1B in wheat led to reduced resistance to leaf rust, underscoring its essential role as a positive regulator in defense against this disease.  Additionally, we propose that TaRLK-1B interacts with the receptor-like cytoplasmic kinase TaRLCK1B, potentially facilitating immune signal transduction.  Our findings also demonstrate that pyramiding minor effect QTLs significantly increases resistance to leaf rust.  This study provides novel insights into resistance genes and valuable QTL information, which could improve marker-assisted wheat breeding efforts.

Soil compaction has become a seriously limitation for further increasing grain yield of maize (Zea mays L.) in the North China Plain (NCP).  However, considerable variability exists among maize hybrids in their grain yield response to soil compaction.  To understand the physiological processes relate to the variation of responses to various soil compactions among maize hybrids, a two-year field experiment was conducted with 17 maize hybrids and three soil compaction treatments (NC, no compaction, SBD, soil bulk density=1.0-1.3 g cm^-3; MC, moderate compaction, SBD=1.4-1.5 g cm^-3, and HC, heavy compaction, SBD>1.6 g cm^-3) to examine the root and shoot morphological traits, dry matter accumulation, and grain yield.  Compared to NC, MC and HC significantly decreased maize yield by 0.9-26.7% and 5.9-41.1% across hybrids and years, respectively.  High compaction tolerance (H) had greater grain yield than hybrids of middle compaction tolerance (M) and low compaction tolerance (L), particularly under HC.  Yield benefits obtained from H hybrid were enhanced due to better root and shoot growth under HC condition.  Greater root length, root surface area, and root weight, as well as root activity, absorption capacity, and antioxidant capacity for H hybrid were found under HC condition, and then maintained increased leaf area index and dry matter accumulation.  Moreover, the increases of root growth indices for H hybrid were greater than that of shoot growth, particularly under HC condition, leading to an increased root/shoot ratio.  We conclude that soil compaction impacts maize root and shoot growth differently depending on genotype, and root growth advantages of H hybrid were more obviously than shoot growth, which enhanced the yield benefits from H hybrid under heavy compaction condition.