---
OA_place: publisher
OA_type: hybrid
PlanS_conform: '1'
_id: '21716'
abstract:
- lang: eng
  text: Male germline development in plants is highly sensitive to heat stress, with
    elevated temperatures frequently impairing male fertility and consequently reducing
    seed production. Indeed, recent global warming has decreased major crop yields,
    emphasizing the urgent need to elucidate the molecular and cellular mechanisms
    underlying heat-induced male sterility. This review synthesizes current knowledge
    on how heat stress disrupts microsporogenesis and microgametogenesis, and how
    plants counteract these stresses through diverse thermotolerance mechanisms. We
    emphasize temperature-sensitive processes, including meiotic progression in male
    germ cells, programmed cell death of somatic tapetal nurse cells, and post-meiotic
    pollen tube development. We further discuss how epigenetic regulators enhance
    thermotolerance by reprogramming DNA methylation landscapes and modulating histone
    variant distribution. Finally, we propose future directions aimed at understanding
    the mechanisms of reproductive thermotolerance from the epigenetic perspective.
acknowledgement: This work was supported by JSPS KAKENHI (grant number JP22J01430)
  and the Osamu Hayaishi Memorial Scholarship for Study Abroad for H.N.
article_number: '102881'
article_processing_charge: Yes (via OA deal)
article_type: original
author:
- first_name: Hiroki
  full_name: Nagai, Hiroki
  id: 608df3e6-e2ab-11ed-8890-c9318cec7da4
  last_name: Nagai
  orcid: 0000-0003-1671-9434
- first_name: Xiaoqi
  full_name: Feng, Xiaoqi
  id: e0164712-22ee-11ed-b12a-d80fcdf35958
  last_name: Feng
  orcid: 0000-0002-4008-1234
citation:
  ama: NAGAI H, Feng X. Genetic and epigenetic mechanisms underlying male reproductive
    thermotolerance. <i>Current Opinion in Plant Biology</i>. 2026;91(6). doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pbi.2026.102881">10.1016/j.pbi.2026.102881</a>
  apa: NAGAI, H., &#38; Feng, X. (2026). Genetic and epigenetic mechanisms underlying
    male reproductive thermotolerance. <i>Current Opinion in Plant Biology</i>. Elsevier.
    <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pbi.2026.102881">https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pbi.2026.102881</a>
  chicago: NAGAI, HIROKI, and Xiaoqi Feng. “Genetic and Epigenetic Mechanisms Underlying
    Male Reproductive Thermotolerance.” <i>Current Opinion in Plant Biology</i>. Elsevier,
    2026. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pbi.2026.102881">https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pbi.2026.102881</a>.
  ieee: H. NAGAI and X. Feng, “Genetic and epigenetic mechanisms underlying male reproductive
    thermotolerance,” <i>Current Opinion in Plant Biology</i>, vol. 91, no. 6. Elsevier,
    2026.
  ista: NAGAI H, Feng X. 2026. Genetic and epigenetic mechanisms underlying male reproductive
    thermotolerance. Current Opinion in Plant Biology. 91(6), 102881.
  mla: NAGAI, HIROKI, and Xiaoqi Feng. “Genetic and Epigenetic Mechanisms Underlying
    Male Reproductive Thermotolerance.” <i>Current Opinion in Plant Biology</i>, vol.
    91, no. 6, 102881, Elsevier, 2026, doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pbi.2026.102881">10.1016/j.pbi.2026.102881</a>.
  short: H. NAGAI, X. Feng, Current Opinion in Plant Biology 91 (2026).
corr_author: '1'
das_tickbox: '1'
dataavailabilitystatement: No data was used for the research described in the article.
date_created: 2026-04-12T22:01:50Z
date_published: 2026-06-01T00:00:00Z
date_updated: 2026-07-27T12:26:03Z
day: '01'
ddc:
- '580'
department:
- _id: XiFe
doi: 10.1016/j.pbi.2026.102881
external_id:
  pmid:
  - '41955759'
file:
- access_level: open_access
  checksum: 929e801eb8f2aef08cf9d9f97be2b2af
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  creator: dernst
  date_created: 2026-07-27T12:20:55Z
  date_updated: 2026-07-27T12:20:55Z
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  file_name: 2026_CurrentOpinionPlantBiology_Nagai.pdf
  file_size: 2255022
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file_date_updated: 2026-07-27T12:20:55Z
has_accepted_license: '1'
intvolume: '        91'
issue: '6'
language:
- iso: eng
month: '06'
oa: 1
oa_version: Published Version
pmid: 1
publication: Current Opinion in Plant Biology
publication_identifier:
  eissn:
  - 1879-0356
  issn:
  - 1369-5266
publication_status: published
publisher: Elsevier
quality_controlled: '1'
researchdata_availability: no
scopus_import: '1'
status: public
supplementarymaterial: no
title: Genetic and epigenetic mechanisms underlying male reproductive thermotolerance
tmp:
  image: /images/cc_by.png
  legal_code_url: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode
  name: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Public License (CC-BY 4.0)
  short: CC BY (4.0)
type: journal_article
user_id: 2DF688A6-F248-11E8-B48F-1D18A9856A87
volume: 91
year: '2026'
...