{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,13]],"date-time":"2026-08-13T06:27:13Z","timestamp":1786602433767,"version":"build-2736575974"},"reference-count":63,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,13]],"date-time":"2026-08-13T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1786579200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Plant Sci."],"abstract":"<jats:p>Sesame is an important oilseed crop, and floral development is a key biological process that lays the foundation for pollination, fertilization, and seed formation, which are closely associated with final yield potential. However, the dynamic transcriptional and metabolic regulatory mechanisms during floral development remain unclear. Here, we performed an integrated transcriptomic and metabolomic analysis across five key developmental stages (T1\u2013T5) of sesame flowers to systematically dissect the multi\u2011omics regulatory network. KEGG enrichment analysis revealed distinct stage\u2011specific metabolic characteristics: early stages (T1\u2013T2) were enriched in primary energy metabolism (glycolysis and starch\/sucrose metabolism); the middle stage (T3) showed enrichment in DNA replication and phenylpropanoid biosynthesis; and late stages (T4\u2013T5) were associated with plant hormone signaling and \u03b1\u2011linolenic acid metabolism. WGCNA identified two modules correlated with development: a positive module involved in phenylpropanoid biosynthesis, and a negative module related to DNA replication and repair. Genes in the phenylpropanoid\/flavonoid pathway displayed a clear sequential expression pattern, promoting flavonoid and anthocyanin accumulation. Collectively, this study provides a comprehensive multi\u2011omics resource and a descriptive framework for understanding transcriptional and metabolic dynamics during sesame floral development, and identifies candidate pathways and genes that may serve as targets for future functional validation and molecular breeding.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3389\/fpls.2026.1918255","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,13]],"date-time":"2026-08-13T05:33:11Z","timestamp":1786599191000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Integrated transcriptome and metabolome analyses uncover stage-specific dynamic regulatory networks during sesame floral development"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"17","author":[{"given":"Qiyuan","family":"An","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Liaoning Research Institute of Cash Crops","place":["Liaoyang, Liaoning, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Hongsen","family":"Cheng","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Liaoning Research Institute of Cash Crops","place":["Liaoyang, Liaoning, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Huijie","family":"Sun","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Liaoning Research Institute of Cash Crops","place":["Liaoyang, Liaoning, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Yanbin","family":"Na","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Liaoning Research Institute of Cash Crops","place":["Liaoyang, Liaoning, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Guangzhen","family":"Zhou","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Ecology of Tropical Islands, Key Laboratory of Tropical Animal and Plant Ecology of Hainan Province, College of Life Sciences, Hainan Normal University","place":["Haikou, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Dexue","family":"Gao","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Liaoning Research Institute of Cash Crops","place":["Liaoyang, Liaoning, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,13]]},"reference":[{"key":"B1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1386","DOI":"10.1126\/science.aan0826","article-title":"Emission of volatile organic compounds from petunia flowers is facilitated by an ABC transporter","volume":"356","author":"Adebesin","year":"2017","journal-title":"Science"},{"key":"B2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"69","DOI":"10.1105\/tpc.110.079079","article-title":"Cytokinin regulates the activity of reproductive meristems, flower organ size, ovule formation, and thus seed yield in Arabidopsis thaliana","volume":"23","author":"Bartrina","year":"2011","journal-title":"Plant Cell"},{"key":"B3","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"322","DOI":"10.1111\/nph.12631","article-title":"Metabolism and development \u2013 integration of micro computed tomography data and metabolite profiling reveals metabolic reprogramming from floral initiation to silique development","volume":"202","author":"Bellaire","year":"2014","journal-title":"New Phytol."},{"key":"B4","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"338","DOI":"10.1016\/j.tplants.2016.12.009","article-title":"The sexual advantage of looking, smelling, and tasting good: the metabolic network that produces signals for pollinators","volume":"22","author":"Borghi","year":"2017","journal-title":"Trends Plant Sci."},{"key":"B5","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"242","DOI":"10.1007\/s00344-010-9180-x","article-title":"The hormonal regulation of floral development","volume":"30","author":"Chandler","year":"2011","journal-title":"J. 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