Science AI Journal
Agricultural and Biological Sciences · Research topic

Open research questions in Seed Germination and Physiology

90 unresolved questions extracted from the limitations and future-work sections of 508 Seed Germination and Physiology papers in our library. Each links back to the study that raised it.

What the literature leaves open

  • The paper identifies a gap in the use of alternative approaches to reduce pesticide use in the environment. It highlights the need for innovative techniques to enhance seed germination quality and subsequent plant development. The study addresses the lack of research on the effects of low-temperature plasma treatment on long-term-stored seeds.

    Effects of Low-Temperature Plasma Treatment on Germination, Seedling Development, and Biochemical Parameters of Long-Term-Stored Seeds · 2025 · DOI

  • The study was conducted on a pilot scale, - The storage period was limited to 150 days, - The study only considered two storage temperatures (25 °C and 10 °C), - The study only considered one type of maize seed (yellow-dent maize seeds, Zea mays var. indentata)

    Germination and Vigor of Maize Seeds: Pilot-Scale Comparison of Low-Oxygen and Traditional Storage Methods · 2024 · DOI

  • Investigating the effects of low-oxygen atmospheres on seed germination and vigor over longer storage periods, - Evaluating the feasibility of low-oxygen atmospheres for other types of seeds, - Comparing the effectiveness of different packaging materials for low-oxygen atmosphere storage

    Germination and Vigor of Maize Seeds: Pilot-Scale Comparison of Low-Oxygen and Traditional Storage Methods · 2024 · DOI

  • Abstract Background and Aims Temperature-dependent responses during early seedling development may contribute to variation in naturalization among herbaceous plants, yet experimental evidence remains limited.

    Temperature-dependent seedling development in native and alien herbaceous plants and associations with naturalization extent · 2026 · DOI

  • Recently, seed priming has emerged as an effective technique to improve seedling emergence under abiotic stress, but the regulation of seed priming treatment on the sowing rate of DSR under saline soil conditions has rarely been reported.

    Regulation effect of seed priming on sowing rate of direct seeding of rice under salt stress · 2025 · DOI

  • Previous research has established the general benefits of SA in enhancing stress tolerance, but the specific mechanisms and effects on common bean genotypes remain underexplored.

    Seed priming with salicylic acid enhances salt stress tolerance by boosting antioxidant defense in Phaseolus vulgaris genotypes · 2025 · DOI

  • While its physiological role in germination is well-documented, the molecular mechanisms are still poorly understood.

    Mapping the molecular signature of ABA-regulated gene expression in germinating barley embryos · 2025 · DOI

  • Furthermore, six candidate genes associated with PHS resistance were predicted, warranting further investigation.

    Genome-wide association study of pre-harvest sprouting resistance and grain color in common wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) · 2025 · DOI

  • Nonetheless, seeds are characterised by a hard and dormant composition, and the precise molecular mechanism behind dormancy release remains unclear.

    Regulatory roles of GA and sugar metabolism genes with metabolomic profiling during seed dormancy release in Gleditsia sinensis · 2025 · DOI

  • Melatonin (MT) is a crucial hormone that controls and positively regulates plant growth under abiotic stress, but the biochemical and physiological processes of the combination of melatonin seed initiation and exogenous spray treatments and their effects on maize germination and seedling salt tolerance are not well understood.

    Melatonin Enhances Maize Germination, Growth, and Salt Tolerance by Regulating Reactive Oxygen Species Accumulation and Antioxidant Systems · 2025 · DOI

  • A positive effect of plasma treatment on these indicators was observed in the wheat cultivar ‘Granny’, while flax cultivar ‘N-9/62/K3/B’ exhibited inconsistent results.

    Effects of Low-Temperature Plasma Treatment on Germination, Seedling Development, and Biochemical Parameters of Long-Term-Stored Seeds · 2025 · DOI

  • However, the influence of ABA priming on seedling emergence in PSCs remains unclear.

    Enhancing sweet sorghum emergence and stress resilience in saline-alkaline soils through ABA seed priming: insights into hormonal and metabolic reprogramming · 2025 · DOI

  • ) is complex, and the evolutionary process, functional differentiation and association mechanism of the DOG gene family with pre-harvest sprouting (PHS) have not been clarified, which urgently needs to be systematically analyzed.

    Evolutionary and functional diversification of the DOG gene family in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and their roles in seed dormancy · 2025 · DOI

  • However, little is known about the function of PMEs in response to ABA-mediated seed germination.

    Pectin methylesterase 31 is transcriptionally repressed by ABI5 to negatively regulate ABA-mediated inhibition of seed germination · 2024 · DOI

  • Better crop stand establishment, a function of rapid and uniform seedling emergence, depends on the activities of germination-related enzymes, which is problematic when there is insufficient soil moisture.

    Enhancing water stress tolerance of bread wheat during seed germination and seedling emergence: caffeine-induced modulation of antioxidative defense mechanisms · 2024 · DOI

  • The mechanism of KNO 3 priming in high temperature stress tolerance is poorly understood yet.

    Seed priming with potassium nitrate alleviates the high temperature stress by modulating growth and antioxidant potential in carrot seeds and seedlings · 2024 · DOI

  • Based on the results of this experiment, it is recommended to conduct further studies into the molecular aspects involved in onion seed deterioration.

    Physiological and molecular changes of onion (Allium cepa L.) seeds under different aging conditions · 2024 · DOI

  • Despite the recognized impact of water availability on plant growth, the specific role of moisture in seedling development remains not fully elucidated.

    Adequate water supply enhances seedling growth and metabolism in Festuca kryloviana: insights from physiological and transcriptomic analys · 2024 · DOI

  • Future investigations should explore protein–protein interactions between plants and endophytes to unravel the mechanisms underlying endophyte-mediated salt resistance in plants.

    Endophyte-mediated enhancement of salt resistance in Arachis hypogaea L. by regulation of osmotic stress and plant defense-related genes · 2024 · DOI

  • This review addresses a number of open questions related to cues that influence seed growth and size and how they influence seed germination.

    When Size Matters: New Insights on How Seed Size Can Contribute to the Early Stages of Plant Development · 2024 · DOI

  • However, the molecular mechanisms responsible for safflower seed viability loss are not yet elucidated.

    Aging-Induced Reduction in Safflower Seed Germination via Impaired Energy Metabolism and Genetic Integrity Is Partially Restored by Sucrose and DA-6 Treatment · 2024 · DOI

  • Despite its extensive use, the underlying physiological mechanisms of urea, particularly its adverse effects on seed germination and seedling growth under salt stress, remain unclear.

    Unraveling the role of urea hydrolysis in salt stress response during seed germination and seedling growth in Arabidopsis thaliana · 2024 · DOI

  • The molecular mechanisms of seed dormancy release in Paeonia lactiflora are not well understood. The role of key hormones and genes in seed dormancy release is not well elucidated.

    Molecular mechanisms of seed dormancy release in Paeonia lactiflora revealed through transcriptomic and metabolomic analysis · 2026 · DOI

  • The study only evaluated the effects of treatments on seed germination and not on subsequent plant growth. The sample size was limited to 25 seeds per treatment. The study did not investigate the underlying mechanisms of dormancy or the effects of treatments on seed viability.

    Tratamentos de sementes de maracujá-do-mato (Passiflora cincinnata Mast.) Para superação de dormência · 2026 · DOI

  • There is a lack of information on the effectiveness of different treatments for overcoming dormancy in maracujá-do-mato seeds. Few studies have investigated methods for improving seed germination rates in this species.

    Tratamentos de sementes de maracujá-do-mato (Passiflora cincinnata Mast.) Para superação de dormência · 2026 · DOI

Most-cited papers in Seed Germination and Physiology

Most recent work

Find a gap in your own Seed Germination and Physiology sub-topic

This page shows what the Seed Germination and Physiology literature already flags as unresolved. To narrow it to your specific question, search the Research Gap Finder: the search is free with a free account and lists the papers closest to your topic first. Unlocking that topic (50 credits, charged once) fills the comparison table from our 4.5M-paper local library and writes the gaps from its rows.

Open the Research Gap Finder →

Related topics in Agricultural and Biological Sciences

Smart Agriculture and AI
831 open questions
Soil Carbon and Nitrogen Dynamics
825 open questions
Agricultural Innovations and Practices
597 open questions
Plant-Microbe Interactions and Immunity
537 open questions
Agricultural Development and Management
537 open questions
Plant Molecular Biology Research
498 open questions
Rural development and sustainability
473 open questions
Plant Stress Responses and Tolerance
448 open questions
90 open questions have been extracted from the limitations and future-work passages of 508 Seed Germination and Physiology papers in our 4.5M-paper local library. Each one below links back to the study that raised it, so you can read the original claim in context.

Tools for your next paper

Gaps & Literature SearchFind open questions in any field — 120,000+ open gaps mined from our own library.Pre-CheckIs your paper ready? A Tier 1–5 acceptance probability in seconds.Journal FinderA ranked shortlist of target journals from a 17,500-venue index.Duplicate Publication CheckerCheck prior-publication & salami-slicing risk across 8 sources.Citation GeneratorFreeA DOI or title → APA, MLA, Vancouver, Chicago, BibTeX, RIS. No signup.Graphical Abstract MakerFreeTurn your findings into a colorblind-safe graphical abstract.

Compare the category — Honest roundups of the AI research tools, ours listed alongside the alternatives.

Command palette

Jump anywhere, run any action.