Browsing by Author "Subhankar Biswas"

Now showing 1 - 14 of 14

Acute cadmium toxicity and post-stress recovery: Insights into coordinated and integrated response/recovery strategies of Anabaena sp. PCC 7120
(Elsevier B.V., 2021) Akanksha Srivastava; Subhankar Biswas; Sandhya Yadav; Sanjiv Kumar; Vaibhav Srivastava; Yogesh Mishra
Cyanobacteria, the first photoautotrophs have remarkable adaptive capabilities against most abiotic stresses, including Cd. A model cyanobacterium, Anabaena sp. PCC 7120 has been commonly used to understand cyanobacterial plasticity under different environmental stresses. However, very few studies have focused on the acute Cd toxicity. In this context, Anabaena was subjected to 100 μM Cd for 48 h (acute Cd stress, ACdS) and then transferred into the fresh medium for post-stress recovery (PSR). We further investigated the dynamics of morpho-ultrastructure, physiology, cytosolic proteome, thylakoidal complexes, chelators, and transporters after ACdS, as well as during early (ER), mid (MR), and late (LR) phases of PSR. The findings revealed that ACdS induced intracellular Cd accumulation and ROS production, altered morpho-ultrastructure, reduced photosynthetic pigments, and affected the structural organization of PSII, which subsequently hindered photosynthetic efficiency. Anabaena responded to ACdS and recovered during PSR by reprogramming the expression pattern of proteins/genes involved in cellular defense and repair; CO2 access, Calvin-Benson cycle, glycolysis, and pentose phosphate pathway; protein biosynthesis, folding, and degradation; regulatory functions; PSI-based cyclic electron flow; Cd chelation; and efflux. These modulations occurred in an integrated and coordinated manner that facilitated Anabaena to detoxify Cd and repair ACdS-induced cellular damage. © 2021 Elsevier B.V.
Bryophytes as Modern Model Plants: An Overview of Their Development, Contributions, and Future Prospects
(Springer, 2023) Sandhya Yadav; Suvajit Basu; Akanksha Srivastava; Subhankar Biswas; Raju Mondal; Vishal Kumar Jha; Sushil Kumar Singh; Yogesh Mishra
Model organisms are commonly employed in research as convenient tools for studying diverse biological processes. Plant research relied on several non-model plants until the Arabidopsis thaliana was developed as powerful model for identifying genes and determining their functions. To study the genetics of unique processes in different species, few other model photosynthetic organisms have recently been established, including Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803, Anabaena sp. PCC 7120, Chlamydomonas reinhardatii, Oryza sativa, Zea mays, Triticum dicoccoides, Populus trichocarpa, and Picea abies. However, when it comes to answering different biological problems, each of the current model plants has its own set of advantages and disadvantages, and many questions about land plant adaptation strategies at the level of morpho-physiology, development, and stress mitigation could not be adequately answered using these models. Furthermore, the high occurrence of embryo lethal mutations rendered studying the molecular basis of 3-dimensional (3-D) growth and gametogenesis unfeasible. Since bryophytes have a low cellular complexity and a dominant haploid gametophytic phase, they could be useful models not only for avoiding the aforementioned drawbacks, but also for functional genomics research and understanding the chronology of land plant evolution. These distinguishing characteristics and the advancement of sequencing technology have led to the development of some bryophytes as modern model plants, including Physcomitrium patens, Marchantia polymorpha, Anthoceros agrestis. Here, we review at how bryophytes became model plants, and how they have been able to answer crucial plant biology-related concerns like stress tolerance and evolutionary developmental (evo-devo) biology that other model plants have not been able to. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.
Cd-induced cytosolic proteome changes in the cyanobacterium Anabaena sp. PCC7120 are mediated by LexA as one of the regulatory proteins
(Elsevier B.V., 2023) Akanksha Srivastava; Arvind Kumar; Subhankar Biswas; Vaibhav Srivastava; Hema Rajaram; Yogesh Mishra
LexA, a well-characterized transcriptional repressor of SOS genes in heterotrophic bacteria, has been shown to regulate diverse genes in cyanobacteria. An earlier study showed that LexA overexpression in a cyanobacterium, Anabaena sp. PCC7120 reduces its tolerance to Cd stress. This was later shown to be due to modulation of photosynthetic redox poising by LexA under Cd stress. However, due to the global regulatory nature of LexA and the prior prediction of AnLexA-box in a few heavy metal-responsive genes, we speculated that LexA has a broad role in Cd tolerance, with regulation over a variety of Cd stress-responsive genes in addition to photosynthetic genes. Thus, to further expand the knowledge on the regulatory role of LexA in Cd stress tolerance, a cytosolic proteome profiling of Anabaena constitutively overexpressing LexA upon Cd stress was performed. The proteomic study revealed 25 differentially accumulated proteins (DAPs) in response to the combined effect of LexA overexpression and Cd stress, and the other 11 DAPs exclusively in response to either LexA overexpression or Cd stress. The 36 identified proteins were related with a variety of functions, including photosynthesis, C-metabolism, antioxidants, protein turnover, post-transcriptional modifications, and a few unknown and hypothetical proteins. The regulation of LexA on corresponding genes, and six previously reported Cd efflux transporters, was further validated by the presence of AnLexA-boxes, transcript, and/or promoter analyses. In a nutshell, this study identifies the regulation of Anabaena LexA on several Cd stress-responsive genes of various functions, hence expanding the regulatory role of LexA under Cd stress. © 2023 Elsevier B.V.
Comparison and optimization of protein extraction and two-dimensional gel electrophoresis protocols for liverworts
(BioMed Central Ltd., 2020) Sandhya Yadav; Akanksha Srivastava; Subhankar Biswas; Neha Chaurasia; Sushil Kumar Singh; Sanjiv Kumar; Vaibhav Srivastava; Yogesh Mishra
Objective: Liverworts possess historical adaptive strategies for abiotic stresses because they were the first plants that shifted from water to land. Proteomics is a state-of-the-art technique that can capture snapshots of events occurring at the protein level in many organisms. Herein, we highlight the comparison and optimization of an effective protein extraction and precipitation protocol for two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE) of liverworts. Results: We compared three different protein extraction methods, i.e.,1.5 M Tris-HCl (pH 8.8), 50 mM Tris-HCl (pH 7.5), and polyvinylpolypyrrolidone (PVPP) extraction, followed by three precipitation methods, i.e., 80% ethanol, 80% acetone, and 20% tricholoroacetic acid (TCA)-acetone, in a liverwort Dumortiera hirsuta. Among these methods, 50 mM Tris-HCl (pH 7.5) extraction, followed by 20% TCA-acetone precipitation, appeared to be more suitable for 2-DE. Furthermore, we performed modifications during protein washing, re-solubilization in rehydration buffer and isoelectric focusing (IEF). The modifications provided us better results in terms of protein yield, resolution, spot numbers, and intensities for 2-DE gels of D. hirsuta and other two liverworts, i.e., Marchantia paleacea and Plagiochasma appendiculatum. Furthermore, we randomly selected spots from the 2-DE gel of D. hirsuta and identified using mass spectrometry, which confirms the applicability of this protocol for liverworts proteomics. © 2020 The Author(s).
Development of Bryophytes as a New Model System to Understand the Phenomenon of Terrestrialization with Environmental Changes
(Springer Nature, 2019) Sandhya Yadav; Subhankar Biswas; Akanksha Srivastava; Yogesh Mishra
Bryophytes are earliest diverging lineages of the extant land plants with around 25,000 species distributed all over the world. Bryophytes can be further classified into three main classes viz. Liverworts, Hornworts and Mosses that grow on a wide range of habitats. Bryophytes, with high ecological and economic values, occupy a very important position in the evolution of terrestrial plants. During the transition of aquatic to terrestrial habitat (terrestrialization), bryophytes got exposed to global climate changes as well as dehydrating atmosphere of terrestrial habitats that led to the desiccation of plant tissues. In order to tolerate the environmental alterations and to protect themselves from abiotic stresses, bryophytes must have enabled themselves to develop certain adaptive strategies. In order to understand these adaptive strategies at molecular level, attempts have been made to develop certain bryophytes as new model system such as Physcomitrella patens and Marchantia polymorpha. In the current chapter we will addresses how does these model systems have been used to address the uniqueness of bryophytes in terms of their capabilities behind the conquering the land i.e. terrestrialization. © 2019, Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.
Evolution of Genetically Modified (GM) Crops and The Scared World
(Elsevier, 2020) Subhankar Biswas; Akanksha Srivastava; Sandhya Yadav; Yogesh Mishra
Since antiquity, it was a key desire of human beings to develop new crops with higher nutritional values and good flavors. The classical plant breeding approaches has given many improved varieties of crops to the world but it has its own limitations, such as (1) genetic exchange can be done in the same species (2) while crossing, many traits are transferred along with the trait/s of interest that might have undesirable effects on yield potential. To overcome these limitations there was an emergence of new technology that is genetic engineering which has developed transgenic plants which are popularly known as genetically modified (GM) plants. First genetic engineering mediated transgenic tobacco plant was developed in 1987. After that, there was a boom in the development of GM crops such as “flavr-savr” tomato, Bt-cotton, corn, etc. In the journey of the past 3 decades, GM crops faced several vicissitudes but never stopped its improvement. The case-by-case study has demonstrated that the technique was never the problem but the consequences may be. In this chapter, we have briefly highlighted the necessity, current status and global impact of genetically modified plants. Apart from these, we have also addressed the question that why a large part of the human population is still scared of GM foods?. © 2021 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Gamma (γ)-radiation stress response of the cyanobacterium Anabaena sp. PCC7120: Regulatory role of LexA and photophysiological changes
(Elsevier Ireland Ltd, 2023) Akanksha Srivastava; Arvind Kumar; Subhankar Biswas; Rajender Kumar; Vaibhav Srivastava; Hema Rajaram; Yogesh Mishra
High radioresistance of the cyanobacterium, Anabaena sp. PCC7120 has been attributed to efficient DNA repair, protein recycling, and oxidative stress management. However, the regulatory network involved in these batteries of responses remains unexplored. In the present study, the role of a global regulator, LexA in modulating gamma (γ)-radiation stress response of Anabaena was investigated. Comparison of the cytosolic proteome profiles upon γ-radiation in recombinant Anabaena strains, AnpAM (vector-control) and AnlexA+ (LexA-overexpressing), revealed 41 differentially accumulated proteins, corresponding to 29 distinct proteins. LexA was found to be involved in the regulation of 27 of the corresponding genes based on the presence of AnLexA-Box, EMSA, and/or qRT-PCR studies. The majority of the regulated genes were found to be involved in C-assimilation either through photosynthesis or C-catabolism and oxidative stress alleviation. Photosynthesis, measured in terms of PSII photophysiological parameters and thylakoid membrane proteome was found to be affected by γ-radiation in both AnpAM and AnlexA+ cells, with LexA affecting them even under control growth conditions. Thus, LexA functioned as one of the transcriptional regulators involved in modulating γ-radiation stress response in Anabaena. This study could pave the way for a deeper understanding of the regulation of γ-radiation-responsive genes in cyanobacteria at large. © 2022 Elsevier B.V.
In silico analysis and expression profiling of S-domain receptor-like kinases (SD-RLKs) under different abiotic stresses in Arabidopsis thaliana
(BioMed Central Ltd, 2021) Raju Mondal; Subhankar Biswas; Akanksha Srivastava; Suvajit Basu; Maitri Trivedi; Sunil Kumar Singh; Yogesh Mishra
Background: S-domain receptor-like kinases (SD-RLKs) are an important and multi-gene subfamily of plant receptor-like/pelle kinases (RLKs), which are known to play a significant role in the development and immune responses of Arabidopsis thaliana. The conserved cysteine residues in the extracellular domain of SD-RLKs make them interesting candidates for sensing reactive oxygen species (ROS), assisting oxidative stress mitigation and associated signaling pathways during abiotic stresses. However, how closely SD-RLKs are interrelated to abiotic stress mitigation and signaling remains unknown in A. thaliana. Results: This study was initiated by examining the chromosomal localization, phylogeny, sequence and differential expression analyses of 37 SD-RLK genes using publicly accessible microarray datasets under cold, osmotic stress, genotoxic stress, drought, salt, UV-B, heat and wounding. Out of 37 SD-RLKs, 12 genes displayed differential expression patterns in both the root and the shoot tissues. Promoter structure analysis suggested that these 12 SD-RLK genes harbour several potential cis-regulatory elements (CREs), which are involved in regulating multiple abiotic stress responses. Based on these observations, we investigated the expression patterns of 12 selected SD-RLKs under ozone, wounding, oxidative (methyl viologen), UV-B, cold, and light stress at different time points using semi-qRT-PCR. Of these 12 SD-SRKs, the genes At1g61360, At1g61460, At1g61380, and At4g27300 emerged as potential candidates that maintain their expression in most of the stress treatments till exposure for 12 h. Expression patterns of these four genes were further verified under similar stress treatments using qRT-PCR. The expression analysis indicated that the gene At1g61360, At1g61380, and At1g61460 were mostly up-regulated, whereas the expression of At4g27300 either up- or down-regulated in these conditions. Conclusions: To summarize, the computational analysis and differential transcript accumulation of SD-RLKs under various abiotic stresses suggested their association with abiotic stress tolerance and related signaling in A. thaliana. We believe that a further detailed study will decipher the specific role of these representative SD-RLKs in abiotic stress mitigation vis-a-vis signaling pathways in A. thaliana. © 2021, The Author(s).
In silico characterization and structural modeling of a homeobox protein MSX1 from Homo sapiens
(Elsevier Ltd, 2021) Sneha Singh; Subhankar Biswas; Akanksha Srivastava; Yogesh Mishra; Thakur Prasad Chaturvedi
Introduction: MSX1 protein, a homeobox transcriptional regulator plays a significant role in various developmental processes of the mammalian system such as limb-pattern formation, craniofacial development, in particular, odontogenesis, and tumor growth inhibition. Several studies have been performed on MSX1 at the genomic and transcriptomic levels. However, there is a lack of information on its structural and conformational aspects. Objective: For better understanding of the molecular mechanism of MSX1, the present study aims to conduct a detailed in-silico analysis of this protein in terms of its physicochemical properties, secondary and tertiary structure predictions, interacting partners, and phylogenetic relationship with other orthologs. Methods: The sequence of the MSX1 protein from Homo sapiens was retrieved in the FASTA format from the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI). The standard bioinformatic tools were further used to characterize and model the structure of this protein. Results: The in-silico characterization of MSX1 revealed that it is a basic, non-polar, and thermostable globular protein mainly localized in the nucleus. This protein is extremely rigid due to the presence of high proline content. The phylogenetic and synteny analysis revealed that the gene is highly conserved at the level of the amino acid sequences, but underwent several modifications at the genomic level in the course of evolution possibly to attain the diverse function. Major part of this protein is a random coil, making it suitable for interaction with other proteins. Subcellular localization and protein-protein interaction suggested that the protein may act as a secretory protein and play a crucial role in regulating several developmental processes. Docking analysis suggested that the MSX1 protein may interact with other proteins and form complexes to carry out its function. Conclusion: The structural characterization of this protein will help to better understand its molecular mechanism of action. In addition, the predicted 3-D model would act as a base for further understanding of the protein's other functional potential. © 2020 The Author(s)
In silico characterization, molecular phylogeny, and expression profiling of genes encoding legume lectin-like proteins under various abiotic stresses in Arabidopsis thaliana
(BioMed Central Ltd, 2022) Subhankar Biswas; Raju Mondal; Akanksha Srivastava; Maitri Trivedi; Sunil Kumar Singh; Yogesh Mishra
Background: Lectin receptor-like kinases (Lec-RLKs), a subfamily of RLKs, have been demonstrated to play an important role in signal transduction from cell wall to the plasma membrane during biotic stresses. Lec-RLKs include legume lectin-like proteins (LLPs), an important group of apoplastic proteins that are expressed in regenerating cell walls and play a role in immune-related responses. However, it is unclear whether LLPs have a function in abiotic stress mitigation and related signaling pathways. Therefore, in this study, we examined the possible role of LLPs in Arabidopsis thaliana (AtLLPs) under various abiotic stresses. Results: The study was initiated by analyzing the chromosomal localization, gene structure, protein motif, peptide sequence, phylogeny, evolutionary divergence, and sub-cellular localization of AtLLPs. Furthermore, the expression profiling of these AtLLPs was performed using publicly accessible microarray datasets under various abiotic stresses, which indicated that all AtLLPs were differently expressed in both root and shoot tissues in response to abiotic stresses. The cis-regulatory elements (CREs) analysis in 500 bp promoter sequences of AtLLPs suggested the presence of multiple important CREs implicated for regulating abiotic stress responses, which was further supported by expressional correlation analysis between AtLLPs and their CREs cognate transcription factors (TFs). qRT-PCR analysis of these AtLLPs after 2, 6, and 12 h of cold, high light, oxidative (MV), UV-B, wound, and ozone stress revealed that all AtLLPs displayed differential expression patterns in most of the tested stresses, supporting their roles in abiotic stress response and signaling again. Out of these AtLLPs, AT1g53070 and AT5g03350 appeared to be important players. Furthermore, the mutant line of AT5g03350 exhibited higher levels of ROS than wild type plants till 12 h of exposure to high light, MV, UV-B, and wound, whereas its overexpression line exhibited comparatively lower levels of ROS, indicating a positive role of this gene in abiotic stress response in A. thaliana. Conclusions: This study provides basic insights in the involvement of two important representative AtLLPs, AT1g53070 and AT5g03350, in abiotic stress response. However, further research is needed to determine the specific molecular mechanism of these AtLLPs in abiotic stress mitigation and related signaling pathways in A. thaliana. © 2022, The Author(s).
Physiological and thylakoid proteome analyses of Anabaena sp. PCC 7120 for monitoring the photosynthetic responses under cadmium stress
(Elsevier B.V., 2021) Akanksha Srivastava; Subhankar Biswas; Sandhya Yadav; Arvind Kumar; Hema Rajaram; Vaibhav Srivastava; Yogesh Mishra
Photosynthetic organisms are highly susceptible to cadmium (Cd) as it interferes with the structural and functional aspects of the photosynthesis. As a major group of photosynthetic prokaryotes, cyanobacteria are also affected by Cd. The inhibitory effects of Cd on cyanobacterial photosynthesis have been studied from an early stage, but the mechanism of Cd toxicity is still unclear. Therefore, we investigated the photosynthetic responses of Anabaena sp. PCC 7120 under Cd stress (LC50) at physiological and thylakoid proteome levels via chlorophyll a fluorescence measurements and blue native (BN)-SDS PAGE, respectively. The findings revealed that Cd exposure triggered the intracellular ROS production and negatively affected the photosynthetic performance. With Cd exposure, effective photochemical quantum yield of PSII (Y(II)) and photochemical quenching efficiency (qP and qL) were significantly reduced, whereas the non-regulated energy dissipation (Y(NO)) was increased. Fast fluorescence kinetic measurements showed that Cd exposure resulted in the inactivation of PSII reaction centres, which interfered with the transfer of energy from antenna complexes to reaction centre, decreased the ability to convert excitation energy into electron transport, increased thermal dissipation, and thus decreased linear electron flow efficiency. Conversely, the efficiency of electron transfer from intermediate carriers to final PSI acceptors was increased, which might be related to the induction of PSI-based cyclic electron flow. This assumption was confirmed by an enhanced post-illumination fluorescence transient. Consistent with these observations, BN-SDS PAGE showed that Cd exposure significantly decreased PSII subunit proteins accumulation, but slightly increased PSI proteins accumulation. Additionally, only minor reductions in the accumulation of ATP synthase/NDH-1 and Cytochrome b6f subunit proteins were observed. The transcript levels of most of the selected subunit proteins were in accordance with BN-SDS PAGE. Collectively, our experiments show that a shift to PSI-based cyclic electron flow was a protective strategy of Anabaena sp. PCC 7120 against Cd-induced PSII photo-damage. © 2021 Elsevier B.V.
Regulatory role of LexA in modulating photosynthetic redox poise and cadmium stress tolerance in the cyanobacterium, Anabaena sp. PCC7120
(Elsevier B.V., 2022) Akanksha Srivastava; Arvind Kumar; Subhankar Biswas; Vaibhav Srivastava; Hema Rajaram; Yogesh Mishra
Strategies developed by organisms to overcome disruption in redox poise of photosynthetic electron transport chain (pETC) are important for its survival under abiotic stress. The process needs to be tightly regulated for optimal functioning. While the redox poising processes are well known in cyanobacteria, understanding of their regulatory network is lacking. Since LexA is one of the known global regulators of stress response in the cyanobacterium Anabaena sp. PCC7120, its role in pETC redox poising was investigated using cadmium (Cd) as an abiotic stressor to disrupt photosynthesis. Assessment of the photosynthetic responses of recombinant Anabaena strains, AnlexA+ (LexA-overexpressing) and AnpAM (vector control), under unstressed and Cd-stressed conditions using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and chlorophyll a fluorescence, indicated that some pETC redox poising responses, including PSII photodamage, energy dissipation, PSI photoprotection, and NDH-mediated cyclic electron flow were decreased in AnlexA+ under unstressed conditions. Disturbance in pETC redox poise during Cd stress observed in Anabaena was accentuated upon overexpression of LexA. The decreased photodamage of PSII and increased photoinhibition of PSI in AnlexA+ in the presence or absence of Cd stress, correlated well with the changes in pETC complexes observed in blue native (BN)-PAGE and the regulation of over 70 of the 90 pETC component genes by LexA demonstrated through transcript, electromobility shift assay (EMSA), and bioinformatics studies. In a nutshell, LexA has been identified as one of the regulators involved in the streamlining of pETC redox poising responses under normal growth and during abiotic stress through transcriptional regulation of some of the redox-controlled pETC component genes. © 2022 Elsevier B.V.
Seasonal Changes in the Antioxidative Defence System of a Liverwort Dumortiera hirsuta
(Springer, 2022) Sandhya Yadav; Akanksha Srivastava; Subhankar Biswas; Suvajit Basu; Sushil Kumar Singh; Yogesh Mishra
Liverworts are influenced by several ecological factors, such as photoperiod, temperature, precipitation, and nutrient availability. These factors vary in different seasons of the Indian calendar year, divisible into pre-monsoon (March–May), monsoon (June–August), post-monsoon (September–November), and fruiting (December–February) seasons. Seasonality causes disturbance in cellular homeostasis, which may trigger ROS formation. To restore the threshold level of ROS, liverworts must be equipped with complex antioxidant defence machinery. Thus, in this study, we analysed the effect of seasonal changes on oxidative stress markers [malondialdehyde (MDA) and total peroxide (H2O2 content)], total protein and pigment contents, and enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants activities/contents in a liverwort, Dumortiera hirsuta, during its four distinct growing seasons. During the fruiting season, the results revealed the highest level of MDA and H2O2 with the lowest level during the pre-monsoon/monsoon seasons. The protein and pigment contents were maximal during the monsoon season and minimal during the fruiting season. With the exception of few [ascorbate peroxidase (APX) and ascorbic acid (ASC)], enzymatic [superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and glutathione reductase (GR)] and non-enzymatic antioxidants (total thiol, proline, and carotenoids) activities/contents were correspondingly high during the fruiting season and low during the pre-monsoon/monsoon seasons, indicating their defensive role in neutralizing/suppressing the increased ROS during the fruiting season when the temperature was very low and the nutrient availability was less. These results therefore suggest that the antioxidative defence machinery plays a potential role in the adaptation of D. hirsuta against oxidative stress, naturally imposed by seasonal climatic changes. © 2021, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.
Two Evolutionary Diverged Liverworts that Shared the Same Habitats Developed a Few Distinct Seasonal Adaptive Strategies: Insights from a Transcriptomic Approach
(Springer, 2025) Suvajit Basu; Sandhya Yadav; Vishal Kumar Jha; Subhankar Biswas; Akanksha Srivastava; Kritika Tripathi; Raju Mondal; Neha Chaurasia; Sushil Kumar Singh; Yogesh Mishra
Since liverworts are among the earliest land plants to undergo seasonal fluctuations, they hold the secret to the molecular mechanism behind seasonal adaptation. Depending on their evolutionary histories, different liverwort species may have relatively distinct adaptive mechanisms. We therefore, performed a seasonal transcriptome analysis of two Indian liverworts, Dumortiera hirsuta and Plagiochasma appendiculatum, during their four different growing seasons (pre-monsoon, monsoon, post-monsoon, and fruiting season). These two species diverged at different points in their evolutionary history but coexist in the same habitat. Phylogenetic trees and evolutionary timescale analyses showed that D. hirsuta is primitive than P. appendiculatum. The RNA-seq analysis showed that D. hirsuta primarily modifies its transcriptome by differentially regulating growth, metabolism, and stress-responsive genes and related TFs in the post-monsoon but mainly induces specific stress-responsive genes in the fruiting season. This is likely to develop reproductive organs in the post-monsoon season and to strategically adapt to the harsh environmental conditions of both seasons by conserving energy during the fruiting season. Conversely, P. appendiculatum exhibited significant transcriptome variability by modulating the expression of genes with similar functions during both the fruiting and post-monsoon seasons, albeit to a lesser degree than D. hirsuta. This suggests that P. appendiculatum strategically modulated its necessary gene expression levels over an extended period of time while taking energy conservation into consideration in order to survive the harsh conditions of both seasons. This study offers the first comprehensive view of seasonal adaptive strategies employed by two evolutionary diverged liverworts that coexist in the same habitat. © The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2025.