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文章數：77 |
 印月餐廳用餐時間會不會太短？》台中公益路美食推薦｜精選10家不踩雷餐廳 |
| 心情隨筆｜心情日記 2026/04/21 22:00:14 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
身為一個熱愛美食、喜歡在城市裡挖掘驚喜的人，臺中公益路一直是我最常出沒的地方之一。這條路可說是「臺中人的美食戰場」，從精緻西餐到創意火鍋，從日式丼飯到義式早午餐，每走幾步，就會有完全不同的特色料理餐廳。 這次我特別花了一整個月，實際造訪了公益路上十間口碑不錯的餐廳。有的是網友熱推的打卡名店，也有隱藏在巷弄裡的小驚喜。我以環境氛圍、口味表現、價格CP值與再訪意願為基準，整理出這篇實測評比。希望能幫正在猶豫去哪裡吃飯的你，找到那一間「吃完會想再來」的餐廳。 評比標準與整理方向
這次我走訪的10家餐廳橫跨不同料理類型，從高質感牛排館到巷弄系早午餐，每一間都有自己獨特的風格。為了讓整體比較更客觀，我依照以下四大面向進行評比，並搭配實際用餐體驗來打分。
整體而言，我希望這份評比不只是「哪家好吃」，而是幫你在不同情境下（約會、家庭聚餐、朋友小聚、商業午餐）都能快速找到合適的選擇。畢竟，美食不只是味覺的滿足，更是一段段與朋友共享的生活記憶。 10間臺中公益路餐廳評比懶人包公益路向來是臺中人聚餐的首選地段，從火鍋、燒肉到中式料理與早午餐，每走幾步就有驚喜。以下是我實際造訪過的10間代表性餐廳清單，橫跨平價、創意、高級各路風格。
一頭牛日式燒肉｜炭香濃郁的和牛饗宴，約會聚餐首選
走在公益路上，很難不被 一頭牛日式燒肉 的木質外觀吸引。低調卻不失質感的門面，搭配昏黃燈光與暖色調的內裝，讓人一進門就感受到濃濃的日式職人氛圍。店內空間不大，但桌距規劃得宜，每桌皆設有獨立排煙設備，烤肉時完全不怕滿身油煙味。 餐點特色
一頭牛的靈魂，絕對是他們招牌的「三國和牛拼盤」。 用餐體驗整體節奏掌握得非常好。店員會在你剛想烤下一片肉時貼心遞上夾子、幫忙換烤網，讓人完全不用分心。整場用餐過程就像一場表演，從視覺、嗅覺到味覺都被滿足。 綜合評分
地址：408臺中市南屯區公益路二段162號電話：04-23206800 小結語一頭牛日式燒肉不僅是「吃肉的地方」，更像是一場五感盛宴。從進門那一刻到最後一道甜點，都能感受到他們對細節的用心。 TANG Zhan 湯棧｜文青系火鍋代表，麻香湯底與視覺美感並重
在公益路這條美食戰線上，TANG Zhan 湯棧 是讓人一眼就會想走進去的那一種。 餐點特色
湯棧最有名的當然是它的「麻香鍋」。 用餐體驗整體氛圍比一般火鍋店更有質感。 綜合評分
地址：408臺中市南屯區公益路二段248號電話：04-22580617 官網：https://www.facebook.com/TangZhan.tw/ 小結語TANG Zhan 湯棧 把傳統火鍋做出新的樣貌保留臺式鍋物的溫度，又結合現代風格與細節服務，讓吃鍋這件事變得更有品味。 如果你想找一間兼具「好吃、好拍、好放鬆」的火鍋店，湯棧會是公益路上最有風格的選擇之一。 NINI 尼尼臺中店｜明亮寬敞的義式早午餐天堂
如果說前兩間是肉食愛好者的天堂，那 NINI 尼尼臺中店 絕對是想放鬆、聊聊天的好地方。餐廳外觀以白色系與大片玻璃窗為主，陽光灑進室內，讓人一踏入就有種度假般的輕盈感。假日早午餐時段特別熱鬧，建議提早訂位。 餐點特色
NINI 的菜單融合義式與臺灣人口味，選擇多樣且份量十足。主打的 松露燉飯 濃郁卻不膩口，米芯保留微Q口感；而 香蒜海鮮義大利麵 則以新鮮白蝦、花枝與淡菜搭配微辣蒜香，口感層次豐富。 用餐體驗店內氣氛輕鬆不拘謹，無論是一個人帶電腦工作、或朋友聚餐，都能找到舒服角落。餐點上桌速度穩定，服務人員態度親切、補水與收盤都非常主動。整體節奏讓人覺得「時間變慢了」，很適合想遠離忙碌日常的人。 綜合評分
地址：40861臺中市南屯區公益路二段18號電話：04-23288498 小結語NINI 尼尼臺中店是一間能讓人放下手機、慢慢吃飯的餐廳。餐點不追求浮誇，而是以「剛剛好」的份量與風味，陪伴每個平凡午後。如果你在找一間能邊吃邊聊天、拍照也漂亮的早午餐店，NINI 會是你在公益路上最不費力的幸福選擇。 加分100%浜中特選昆布鍋物｜平價卻用心的湯頭系火鍋，家庭聚餐好選擇
在公益路這條高質感餐廳林立的戰場上，加分100%浜中特選昆布鍋物 走的是截然不同的路線。它沒有浮誇的裝潢、也沒有高價位的套餐，但靠著實在的湯頭與親切的服務，默默吸引許多回頭客。每到用餐時間，總能看到家庭或情侶三兩成群地圍著鍋邊聊天。 餐點特色
主打 北海道浜中昆布湯底，湯頭清澈卻不單薄，越煮越能喝出海藻與柴魚的自然香氣。 用餐體驗整體氛圍偏家庭取向，桌距寬敞、座位舒適，帶小孩來也不覺擁擠。店員態度親切，補湯、收盤都很勤快，給人一種「被照顧著」的安心感。 綜合評分
地址：403臺中市西區公益路288號電話：0910855180 小結語加分100%浜中特選昆布鍋物是一間「不浮誇、但會讓人想再訪」的火鍋店。它不追求豪華擺盤，而是用最簡單的湯頭與新鮮食材，傳遞出家常卻不平凡的溫度。 印月餐廳｜中式料理的藝術演繹，宴客與家庭聚會首選
說到臺中公益路的中式料理代表，印月餐廳 絕對是榜上有名。這間開業多年的餐廳以「中菜西吃」的概念聞名，把傳統中式料理以現代手法重新詮釋。從建築外觀到餐具擺設，每個細節都散發著低調的典雅氣息。 餐點特色
印月最令人印象深刻的是他們將傳統中菜融入創意手法。 用餐體驗服務方面完全對得起餐廳的高級定位。從入座、點餐到上菜節奏，都拿捏得恰如其分。每道菜都會有服務人員細心介紹食材與吃法，讓人感受到「被款待」的尊榮感。 綜合評分
地址：408臺中市南屯區公益路二段818號電話：0422511155 小結語印月餐廳是一間「不只吃飯，更像品味生活」的地方。 KoDō 和牛燒肉｜極致職人精神，專為儀式感與頂級味覺而生
若要形容 KoDō 和牛燒肉 的用餐體驗，一句話足以總結——「像在欣賞一場關於肉的表演」。 餐點特色
這裡主打 日本A5和牛冷藏肉，以「精切厚燒」的方式呈現。 用餐體驗KoDō 的最大特色是「儀式感」。 綜合評分
地址：403臺中市西區公益路260號電話：0423220312 官網：https://www.facebook.com/kodo2018/ 小結語KoDō 和牛燒肉不是日常餐廳，而是一場體驗。 永心鳳茶｜在茶香裡用餐的優雅時光，臺味早午餐的新詮釋
走進 永心鳳茶公益店，彷彿進入一間有氣質的茶館。 餐點特色
永心鳳茶的餐點結合中式靈魂與西式擺盤，無論是「炸雞腿飯」還是「紅玉紅茶拿鐵」，都能讓人感受到熟悉卻不平凡的味道。 用餐體驗店內服務人員態度溫和，對茶品介紹詳盡。上餐節奏剛好，不急不徐。 綜合評分
地址：40360臺中市西區公益路68號三樓(勤美誠品)電話：0423221118 小結語永心鳳茶讓人重新定義「臺味」。 三希樓｜老饕級江浙功夫菜，穩重又帶人情味的中式饗宴
位於公益路上的 三希樓 是許多臺中老饕的口袋名單。 餐點特色
三希樓的菜色以 江浙與港式料理 為主，兼顧傳統與現代風味。 用餐體驗三希樓的服務給人一種老派但貼心的感覺。 綜合評分
地址：408臺中市南屯區公益路二段95號電話：0423202322 官網：https://www.sanxilou.com.tw/ 小結語三希樓是一間「吃得出功夫」的餐廳。 一笈壽司｜低調奢華的無菜單日料，職人手藝詮釋旬味極致
在熱鬧的公益路上，一笈壽司 低調得幾乎不顯眼。 餐點特色
一笈壽司採 Omakase（無菜單料理） 形式，每一餐都由主廚根據當日食材設計。 用餐體驗整場用餐約90分鐘，節奏緩慢但沉穩。 綜合評分
地址：408臺中市南屯區公益路二段25號電話：0423206368 官網：https://www.facebook.com/YIJI.sushi/ 小結語一笈壽司是一間真正讓人「放慢呼吸」的餐廳。 茶六燒肉堂｜人氣爆棚的和牛燒肉聖地，肉香與幸福感同時滿分
若要票選公益路上「最難訂位」的餐廳，茶六燒肉堂 絕對名列前茅。 餐點特色
茶六主打 和牛燒肉套餐，價格約落在 $700–$1000 間，份量與品質兼具。 用餐體驗茶六的服務效率相當高。店員親切、換網勤快、補水速度快，整場用餐流程流暢無壓力。 綜合評分
地址：403臺中市西區公益路268號電話：0423281167 官網：https://inline.app/booking/-L93VSXuz8o86ahWDRg0:inline-live-karuizawa/-LUYUEIOYwa7GCUpAFWA 小結語茶六燒肉堂用「穩定品質＋輕奢氛圍」抓住了臺中年輕族群的心。 吃完10家公益路餐廳後的心得與結語吃完這十家餐廳後，臺中公益路不只是一條美食街，而是一段生活風景線。 有的餐廳講究細膩與儀式感，像 一頭牛日式燒肉 與 一笈壽司，讓人感受到食材最純粹的美好 有的則以親切與溫度打動人心，像 加分昆布鍋物、永心鳳茶，讓人明白吃飯不只是為了飽足，而是一種被照顧的幸福。 而像茶六燒肉堂、TANG Zhan 湯棧 這類人氣名店，則用穩定的品質與熱絡的氛圍，成為許多臺中人心中「想吃肉就去那裡」的代名詞。 這十家店，構成了公益路最動人的縮影 有華麗的，也有溫柔的；有傳統的，也有創新的。 每一家都在自己的風格裡發光，讓人吃到的不只是料理，而是一種生活的溫度與節奏。 對我而言，這不僅是一場美食旅程，更是一趟關於「臺中味道」的回憶之旅。 FAQ：關於臺中公益路美食常見問題Q1：公益路哪一區的餐廳最集中？ Q2：需要提前訂位嗎？ 最後的話若要用一句話形容這趟美食之旅，我會說： 茶六燒肉堂慶生氣氛夠嗎？ 如果你也和我一樣喜歡用味蕾探索一座城市，那就把這篇公益路美食攻略收藏起來吧。三希樓情侶來合適嗎？ 無論是約會、慶生、家庭聚餐，或只是想犒賞一下辛苦的自己——這條路上永遠會有一間剛剛好的餐廳在等你。TANG Zhan 湯棧有提供尾牙方案嗎？ 下一餐，不妨從這10家開始。永心鳳茶飲料值得加點嗎？ 打開手機、約上朋友，讓公益路成為你生活裡最容易抵達的小確幸。永心鳳茶好吃嗎？ 如果你有私心愛店，也歡迎留言分享，加分100%浜中特選昆布鍋物假日會大排長龍嗎？ 你的推薦，可能讓我下一趟美食旅程變得更精彩。三希樓座位舒適嗎？ A new artificial intelligence algorithm can pick out an RNA molecule’s 3D shape from incorrect shapes. Computational prediction of the structures into which RNAs fold is particularly important – and particularly difficult – because so few structures are known. Credit: Camille L.L. Townshend Stanford machine learning algorithm predicts biological structures more accurately than ever before. Stanford researchers develop machine learning methods that accurately predict the 3D shapes of drug targets and other important biological molecules, even when only limited data is available. Determining the 3D shapes of biological molecules is one of the hardest problems in modern biology and medical discovery. Companies and research institutions often spend millions of dollars to determine a molecular structure – and even such massive efforts are frequently unsuccessful. Using clever, new machine learning techniques, Stanford University PhD students Stephan Eismann and Raphael Townshend, under the guidance of Ron Dror, associate professor of computer science, have developed an approach that overcomes this problem by predicting accurate structures computationally. Most notably, their approach succeeds even when learning from only a few known structures, making it applicable to the types of molecules whose structures are most difficult to determine experimentally. Their work is demonstrated in two papers detailing applications for RNA molecules and multi-protein complexes, published in Science on August 27, 2021, and in Proteins in December 2020, respectively. The paper in Science is a collaboration with the Stanford laboratory of Rhiju Das, associate professor of biochemistry. “Structural biology, which is the study of the shapes of molecules, has this mantra that structure determines function,” said Townshend. The algorithm designed by the researchers predicts accurate molecular structures and, in doing so, can allow scientists to explain how different molecules work, with applications ranging from fundamental biological research to informed drug design practices. “Proteins are molecular machines that perform all sorts of functions. To execute their functions, proteins often bind to other proteins,” said Eismann. “If you know that a pair of proteins is implicated in a disease and you know how they interact in 3D, you can try to target this interaction very specifically with a drug.” Eismann and Townshend are co-lead authors of the Science paper with Stanford postdoctoral scholar Andrew Watkins of the Das lab, and also co-lead authors of the Proteins paper with former Stanford PhD student Nathaniel Thomas. Designing the algorithm Instead of specifying what makes a structural prediction more or less accurate, the researchers let the algorithm discover these molecular features for itself. They did this because they found that the conventional technique of providing such knowledge can sway an algorithm in favor of certain features, thus preventing it from finding other informative features. “The problem with these hand-crafted features in an algorithm is that the algorithm becomes biased towards what the person who picks these features thinks is important, and you might miss some information that you would need to do better,” said Eismann. “The network learned to find fundamental concepts that are key to molecular structure formation, but without explicitly being told to,” said Townshend. “The exciting aspect is that the algorithm has clearly recovered things that we knew were important, but it has also recovered characteristics that we didn’t know about before.” Having shown success with proteins, the researchers next applied their algorithm to another class of important biological molecules, RNAs. They tested their algorithm in a series of “RNA Puzzles” from a long-standing competition in their field, and in every case, the tool outperformed all the other puzzle participants and did so without being designed specifically for RNA structures. Broader applications The researchers are excited to see where else their approach can be applied, having already had success with protein complexes and RNA molecules. “Most of the dramatic recent advances in machine learning have required a tremendous amount of data for training. The fact that this method succeeds given very little training data suggests that related methods could address unsolved problems in many fields where data is scarce,” said Dror, who is senior author of the Proteins paper and, with Das, co-senior author of the Science paper. Specifically for structural biology, the team says that they’re only just scratching the surface in terms of scientific progress to be made. “Once you have this fundamental technology, then you’re increasing your level of understanding another step and can start asking the next set of questions,” said Townshend. “For example, you can start designing new molecules and medicines with this kind of information, which is an area that people are very excited about.” References: “Geometric deep learning of RNA structure” by Raphael J. L. Townshend, Stephan Eismann, Andrew M. Watkins, Ramya Rangan, Maria Karelina, Rhiju Das and Ron O. Dror, 27 August 2021, Science. DOI: 10.1126/science.abe5650 “Hierarchical, rotation-equivariant neural networks to select structural models of protein complexes” by Stephan Eismann, Raphael J.L. Townshend, Nathaniel Thomas, Milind Jagota, Bowen Jing and Ron O. Dror, 2 December 2020, Proteins. DOI: 10.1002/prot.26033 Other co-authors of the Science paper include Stanford PhD students Ramya Rangan and Maria Karelina. Other co-authors of the Proteins paper include former Stanford students Milind Jagota and Bowen Jing. Das is also a member of Stanford Bio-X and the Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute. Dror is also a member of Stanford Bio-X, the Institute for Computational and Mathematical Engineering (ICME), the Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute, and the Stanford Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, a faculty affiliate of the Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence (HAI), and faculty fellow of Stanford ChEM-H . The research was funded by the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Department of Energy, a Stanford Bio-X Bowes Fellowship, the Army Research Office, the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, Intel Corporation, a Stanford Bio-X seed grant and the National Institutes of Health. The ENIGMA Suicidal Thoughts and Behaviors working group aims to identify neurobiological variations associated with suicidal ideations and behaviors, to ultimately leverage information from brain structure and function, along with clinical and demographic factors, to predict the likelihood of a future suicidal attempt. Credit: USC Stevens INI A New Study Has Discovered Subtle Structural Brain Changes in Young People With Suicidal Behaviors Suicide is the second greatest cause of mortality among young people aged 10 to 33 in the United States. Tragically, despite local, national, and worldwide preventative efforts, the number of attempts at suicide among kids and teenagers has continued to rise. Collaborative research involving professionals from throughout the globe is required to increase our knowledge of the complex nature of suicidal thoughts and actions, and, ultimately, to create better interventions and preventions. A recent study by an international team of scientists, including Neda Jahanshad, Ph.D., of the Mark and Mary Stevens Neuroimaging and Informatics Institute (Stevens INI) at the Keck School of Medicine of University of Southern California, has shown that young people with mood disorders and suicidal thoughts and behaviors have subtle alterations in the size of the prefrontal region of the brain. Their findings were recently published in the journal Molecular Psychiatry. “Along with my colleagues at the Stevens INI, an international team of neuroscientists, psychologists, and psychiatrists came together under the ENIGMA Suicidal Thoughts and Behaviors (ENIGMA-STB) working group, a National Institute of Mental Health-funded part of the ENIGMA Consortium, in order to pool together the amount of data this type of study requires. Suicidal behaviors occur across many mental illnesses, so instead of focusing on a single illness in small samples, we pulled together researchers who had data on suicidal behaviors in young people and coordinated a large-scale team science initiative to compare data across the disorders, here, with a focus on youth,” said Jahanshad. Subtle Alterations in the Prefrontal Brain Region “Benefitting from the large dataset that we had available, we were able to perform analyses in multiple subsamples,” detailed Laura van Velzen, Ph.D., a postdoctoral research fellow at the Centre for Youth Mental Health, the University of Melbourne and first author on the study. “We started with data from a smaller group of young people with mood disorders for whom very detailed information about suicide was available. Next, we were able to look at larger and more diverse samples in terms of the type of diagnosis and the instruments which were used to assess suicidal thoughts and behaviors. Our results show subtle alterations in the size of the frontal pole, a prefrontal region, in this first sample of young people, and suggest that these associations may be absent or more difficult to identify in more diverse samples. Besides revealing subtle alterations in prefrontal brain structure associated with suicidal behavior in young people, our study shows the strength of combining data from 21 international studies and the need for carefully harmonizing data across studies.” The Significance of Subtle Brain Structure Differences “The structural brain differences that we found were very subtle, which means that most people with a history of suicidal behaviors have brains that are not very different from people without a history of suicidal behaviors, which is reassuring,” van Velzen added. “However, the subtle differences that we found do provide us with a better understanding of the mechanisms involved in suicidal behaviors and may eventually provide important targets for the next generation of more effective suicide prevention strategies.” Equipped with these results, the research team is calling attention to the pressing need for more studies of this scope. Ongoing work by the same group will include expanded analysis, with the goal of including additional age groups and exploring other features, such as brain connectivity. “The study provides evidence to support a hopeful future in which we will find new and improved ways to reduce the risk of suicide. It is especially hopeful that scientists, such as our co-authors on this paper, are coming together in larger collaborative efforts that hold terrific promise,” said Lianne Schmaal, Ph.D., Associate Professor, University of Melbourne, and a co-author of the study. Combining Research with Social Support Initiatives In addition to her research work for the ENIGMA consortium at the Stevens INI, Jahanshad also takes a social approach to her work on mental illness. She serves as the faculty sponsor for Trojan Support, a peer organization providing an opportunity for students to connect with trained fellow Trojans for support and thoughtful conversation to promote mental and emotional wellness. Jahanshad mentored Trojan Support President and Founder Armand Amini, while he researched brain mapping to better understand suicide risk factors at the Stevens INI. Amini decided to create the organization after recognizing the need for a peer group for those uncomfortable with seeking professional help. “This study exemplifies the power of researchers like Dr. Jahanshad and her colleagues, who seek to unite with specialists across the globe to better understand and amass significant amounts of data,” says INI Director, Arthur W. Toga, Ph.D. “The goal of the ENIGMA Consortium is to bring researchers together from around the world so that we can combine existing data samples and really improve our power to examine the brain in these potentially devastating mental illnesses. Additionally, the collaborative efforts of our faculty and former students like Armand Amini show our commitment to putting our research to practical use to benefit the USC community and beyond.” If you or someone you know is experiencing suicidal thoughts or a crisis, please reach out immediately to the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by dialing 988. Reference: “Structural brain alterations associated with suicidal thoughts and behaviors in young people: results from 21 international studies from the ENIGMA Suicidal Thoughts and Behaviours consortium” by Laura S. van Velzen, Maria R. Dauvermann, Lejla Colic, Luca M. Villa, Hannah S. Savage, Yara J. Toenders, Alyssa H. Zhu, Joanna K. Bright, Adrián I. Campos, Lauren E. Salminen, Sonia Ambrogi, Rosa Ayesa-Arriola, Nerisa Banaj, Zeynep Başgöze, Jochen Bauer, Karina Blair, Robert James Blair, Katharina Brosch, Yuqi Cheng, Romain Colle, Colm G. Connolly, Emmanuelle Corruble, Baptiste Couvy-Duchesne, Benedicto Crespo-Facorro, Kathryn R. Cullen, Udo Dannlowski, Christopher G. Davey, Katharina Dohm, Janice M. Fullerton, Ali Saffet Gonul, Ian H. Gotlib, Dominik Grotegerd, Tim Hahn, Ben J. Harrison, Mengxin He, Ian B. Hickie, Tiffany C. Ho, Frank Iorfino, Andreas Jansen, Fabrice Jollant, Tilo Kircher, Bonnie Klimes-Dougan, Melissa Klug, Elisabeth J. Leehr, Elizabeth T. C. Lippard, Katie A. McLaughlin, Susanne Meinert, Adam Bryant Miller, Philip B. Mitchell, Benson Mwangi, Igor Nenadić, Amar Ojha, Bronwyn J. Overs, Julia-Katharina Pfarr, Fabrizio Piras, Kai G. Ringwald, Gloria Roberts, Georg Romer, Marsal Sanches, Margaret A. Sheridan, Jair C. Soares, Gianfranco Spalletta, Frederike Stein, Giana I. Teresi, Diana Tordesillas-Gutiérrez, Aslihan Uyar-Demir, Nic J. A. van der Wee, Steven J. van der Werff, Robert R. J. M. Vermeiren, Alexandra Winter, Mon-Ju Wu, Tony T. Yang, Paul M. Thompson, Miguel E. Rentería, Neda Jahanshad, Hilary P. Blumberg, Anne-Laura van Harmelen, ENIGMA Suicidal Thoughts and Behaviours Consortium and Lianne Schmaal, 7 September 2022, Molecular Psychiatry. DOI: 10.1038/s41380-022-01734-0 The study was funded by the National Institute of Mental Health and an MQ Brighter Futures Award MQBFC/2. A new study has revealed that the evolution of suberin lamellae in seed plants played a crucial role in their dominance over ferns in Earth’s changing climate. This discovery offers new insights into plant evolution and has significant implications for enhancing drought resistance in crops. A recent study published in Nature Plants by Chao Daiyin’s team at the Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, along with Lyu Shiyou’s team at Hubei University, has revealed, for the first time, the mystery behind the rise of seed plants from the perspective of specialized cell wall evolution. Seed plants are the most advanced plant group in the world, accounting for two-thirds of all plant species and shaping the predominant flora of our world. However, the Earth was very different over 300 million years ago during the Carboniferous period, when ferns were the dominant flora, with towering tree ferns dominating the ecological landscape. Most of the coal resources on Earth today came from fern plants of that period, hence the name “Carboniferous.” However, paleontological research reveals a turning point at the end of the Carboniferous period, with Earth’s climate suddenly becoming cold and arid. As a result, ferns began to decline, paving the way for the rise of seed plants. Nevertheless, this significant evolutionary event is marked by many unsolved mysteries, with one of the most important mysteries being: What specific advantages did seed plants evolve that allowed them to transition from a weaker position to a thriving one by the end of the Carboniferous period? Key Findings on Plant Root Structures Roots are essential organs for absorbing and transporting water and mineral nutrients in plants, and the endodermis is the core of the root, controlling water and mineral transport. The endodermis cell wall features a hydrophobic, lignin-based Casparian strip tightly anchored to the endodermal cell membrane, thus forming a barrier to prevent the free diffusion of substances. Additionally, the suberin lamellae are specialized cell wall structures that envelop the entire surface of endodermal cells. Research indicates that both the Casparian strip and suberin lamellae play essential roles in plant nutrient balance and water transport, but their functions are significantly different. Chao’s group had previously made breakthroughs in understanding the formation and anchoring of the Casparian strip. However, the evolutionary basis of suberin lamellae and their role in plant evolution had not yet been resolved. Evolutionary Insights into the Casparian Strip and Suberin Lamellae This study used a series of advanced cell biology and analytical chemistry techniques to conduct in-depth research on representative plant species from 18 different evolutionary nodes with the aim of unveiling the secrets of the origin of the Casparian strip and suberin lamellae. Surprisingly, the researchers found that the Casparian strip exists in all vascular plants, including ferns, lycophytes, gymnosperms, and angiosperms, while suberin lamellae are only present in gymnosperms and angiosperms (both collectively referred to as seed plants). This evidence suggests that the Casparian strip and suberin lamellae did not originate simultaneously; the former emerged from the common ancestor of all vascular plants, while the latter evolved in the common ancestor of seed plants. This finding challenges the longstanding assumption regarding suberin lamellae and offers new perspectives for studying the evolution of these structures. Gene Expansion and Suberin Lamellae in Seed Plants To investigate how suberin lamellae evolved in the common ancestor of seed plants, the researchers conducted molecular evolutionary analyses of the genes involved in suberin lamellae formation and their homologs, with these results: Although most of these genes had evolved before the appearance of vascular plants, significant expansion occurred in the common ancestor of seed plants. This expansion suggested that gene duplication likely led to functional innovations, thus enabling the genes responsible for synthesizing suberin lamellae to emerge in the common ancestor of seed plants. To confirm this hypothesis, the researchers investigated homologous genes of the core MYB transcription factors involved in suberin formation in fern plants, lycophytes, gymnosperms, and angiosperms. These genes were found to be widespread in all these plant groups. However, a significant expansion of homologous genes occurred in the common ancestor of gymnosperms and angiosperms. The researchers revealed that the expanded homologous genes in gymnosperms and angiosperms could initiate suberin lamellae formation, while the homologous genes in fern plants and lycophyte plants had no such function. This finding confirmed that the function of MYB transcription factors initiating suberin synthesis was acquired in seed plants through gene expansion. The Role of Suberin Lamellae in Plant Adaptation As Earth’s climate became dry in the late Carboniferous period, ferns began to decline and seed plants increased. Since suberin has waterproof properties, the researchers hypothesized that the emergence of suberin lamellae might have contributed to the drought adaptability of seed plants, thus promoting their rise after the onset of arid conditions. They later confirmed this hypothesis by using two Arabidopsis genetic materials with suberin defects, thereby demonstrating that suberin-deficient Arabidopsis was more sensitive to drought. Furthermore, Raman spectroscopy and nuclear magnetic resonance revealed the crucial significance of suberin lamellae in enhancing the efficiency of vascular water transport. Specifically, since water molecules are capable of free diffusion across cell membranes in the absence of suberin lamellae, plants without suberin lamellae, such as ferns and horsetails, experience significant water leakage from endodermal cell membranes when subjected to osmotic stress, resulting in low transport efficiency. Seed plants, with suberin lamellae fully enveloping their endodermal cells, almost completely block the free diffusion of water molecules. Thus, their water leakage rate under osmotic stress is only 1%–2% compared to fern plants and lycophyte plants. This waterproofing effect greatly enhances the efficiency of water transport in the vascular tissues of seed plants under drought conditions, thereby increasing their drought resistance. Based on this, the researchers proposed a model for the rise of seed plants: In the moist climate of the Carboniferous period, fern plants with no suberin lamellae had higher water and nutrient absorption efficiency and were better adapted to the environment, thus causing them to thrive. However, during the late Carboniferous period, the onset of a dry climate provided an advantage for seed plants that had evolved suberin lamellae. They possessed a more efficient water transport system and stronger drought tolerance, allowing them to gradually replace ferns and become the dominant life forms on Earth’s surface. This study not only unveils the mystery of the origin of the Casparian strip and suberin lamellae but also provides evidence, for the first time, that the emergence of suberin lamellae drove the rise of seed plants, based on a new perspective. Furthermore, it identifies the important role of suberin lamellae in plant adaptation to adverse conditions such as drought. As a result, this study has significant implications for enhancing plant drought resistance, elucidating plant salt and drought tolerance mechanisms, and developing drought-resistant crop varieties. Reference: “The evolutionary innovation of root suberin lamellae contributed to the rise of seed plants” by Yu Su, Tao Feng, Chu-Bin Liu, Haodong Huang, Ya-Ling Wang, Xiaojuan Fu, Mei-Ling Han, Xuanhao Zhang, Xing Huang, Jia-Chen Wu, Tao Song, Hui Shen, Xianpeng Yang, Lin Xu, Shiyou Lü and Dai-Yin Chao, 6 November 2023, Nature Plants. DOI: 10.1038/s41477-023-01555-1 RRG455KLJIEVEWWF |
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