Characterising the morphological characters and carbohydrate metabolism of oat culms and their association with lodging resistance

• Lodging resistance can be improved by enhancing the mechanical strength of culms, and culm carbohydrates could improve this mechanical strength. Culm carbohydrates can regulate development of the culm and affect its toughness.
• The present study determines the relationship between lodging and carbohydrate content in oat culms. Field experiments were conducted in alpine regions in 2017 and 2018 using three oat varieties with different lodging resistance. Lodging‐related morphological characteristics were directly determined and culm carbohydrate content and enzyme activity related to cellulose synthesis and sucrose metabolism were evaluated with ultraviolet spectrophotometry.
• Results showed that the lower the gravity height or the lower ratio of gravity height to plant height, the stronger the lodging resistance of the varieties. Higher culm nonstructural (NSC) and structural (SC) carbohydrate content contributed to the ability of culms to resist lodging, especially the content of cellulose and sucrose. PCA showed that sucrose metabolism and SC content were closely related to lodging resistance. Correlation analysis showed that the lodging index (LI) was significantly negatively correlated with NSC. Sucrose content was highly and significantly positively correlated with NSC. Additionally, the activities of sucrose phosphate synthase (SPS) and sucrose synthase (SS) were highly and significantly positively correlated with sucrose and cellulose content.
• The relationship between field characters and oat lodging, as well as the regulatory mechanism of carbohydrate content on lodging resistance of the culm are discussed.

     

不同小麦品种茎秆特性及其与抗倒性的关系

以黄淮麦区优良品种矮抗58、周麦18、豫麦49、百农418为研究对象,采用田间试验与实验室分析相结合的方法,对不同小麦品种在不同生育时期的抗倒伏性状进行研究.结果表明: 茎秆机械强度在开花期至花后20 d处于较高水平,在花后30 d明显下降;倒伏指数在开花期最小,花后30 d最大,其余两个时期处于中间水平.相关分析表明,开花期机械强度与重心高度呈显著负相关,与纤维素、木质素含量呈显著正相关,倒伏指数与节长、株高、重心高度呈显著正相关,与纤维素、木质素含量呈显著负相关;花后10 d和花后20 d机械强度与节长、株高、重心高度呈显著负相关,与茎粗、纤维素、半纤维素、木质素含量呈显著正相关,倒伏指数这段时期正好与之相反;花后30 d机械强度与株高、重心高度呈显著负相关,倒伏指数与株高、重心高度呈显著正相关,与木质素含量呈显著负相关.因此,明确各个生育时期与抗倒性相关的茎秆特性,可为黄淮麦区高产抗倒性品种的选育提供依据.     

Upgrading the genome of an elite japonica rice variety Kongyu 131 for lodging resistance improvement

Developing a new rice variety requires tremendous efforts and years of input. To improve the defect traits of the excellent varieties becomes more cost and time efficient than breeding a completely new variety. Kongyu 131 is a high-performing japonica variety with early maturity, high yield, wide adaptability and cold resistance, but the poor-lodging resistance hinders the industrial production of Kongyu 131 in the Northeastern China. In this study, we attempted to improve the lodging resistance of Kongyu 131 from perspectives of both gene and trait. On the one hand, by QTL analysis and fine mapping we discovered the candidate gene loci. The following CRISPR/Cas9 and transgenic complementation study confirmed that Sd1 dominated the lodging resistance and favourable allele was mined for precise introduction and improvement. On the other hand, the Sd1 allelic variant was identified in Kongyu 131 by sequence alignment, then introduced another excellent allelic variation by backcrossing. Then, the two new resulting Kongyu 131 went through the field evaluation under different environments, planting densities and nitrogen fertilizer conditions. The results showed that the plant height of upgraded Kongyu 131 was 17%–26% lower than Kongyu 131 without penalty in yield. This study demonstrated a precise and targeted way to update the rice genome and upgrade the elite rice varieties by improving only a few gene defects from the perspective of breeding.     

The effects of lodging and a paclobutrazol — chlormequat chloride mixture on the yield and quality of oilseed rape

The effects of lodging and a plant growth regulator mixture on oilseed rape cv. Ariana were studied in three field experiments. Natural and artificially induced lodging treatments varying in time of imposition and severity were compared to a supported control. A mixture of paclobutrazol and chlormequat chloride was applied either as a spray or as paclobutrazol granules followed immediately by a chlormequat chloride spray.
In 1987, severe lodging treatments reduced yield by up to 52%. Yield penalties varied with the time at which lodging was imposed. Yield was inversely correlated with the ground cover of volunteers growing from shed seed under lodged crops.
In 1988, two experiments showed increased incidence of disease and decreases in seed yield and quality in lodged crops. Yield reductions were related to the severity of lodging. Lodging decreased oil contents and increased glucosinolate levels. PGR treatments reduced lodging and maintained yield at a level not significantly different to a supported control treatment. Oil contents were also similar in seed from PGR treated and control plots. Glucosinolate levels in PGR treated seed were similar to control levels in one experiment and intermediate to those from control and artificially lodged plots in another experiment.
The results are discussed in relation to the use of PGRs to prevent lodging in 'double zero' varieties of oilseed rape, and the potential losses from using ground vehicles to apply pesticides after flowering.     

水、旱条件下水稻茎秆主要抗倒伏性状的QTL分析

以粳型旱稻IRAT109和粳型水稻越富杂交的116个DH株系的群体为材料,利用已构建的分子标记连锁图(包括94个RFLP标记和71个SSR标记),定位了水稻茎秆主要抗倒伏性状的QTL。在水田、旱田栽培条件下,考查了乳熟期DH系及其亲本的茎基粗、茎秆长及茎秆强度等性状。相关分析表明,茎基粗与茎秆长、茎基粗与茎秆强度及茎秆长与茎秆强度间均呈极显著正相关。利用QTLMAPPER进行水、旱田单环境定位分析及水、旱田联合定位分析定位了控制这些性状的QTL。水、旱田单环境定位分析结果表明：3个性状共检测到9个加性QTL和5对上位性QTL;联合定位分析表明：茎基粗、茎秆长共检测到6个加性QTL和6对上位性QTL,其中6个加性QTL和1对上位性QTL在两种方法下都检测到。旱田条件下检测到2个加性及2对上位性QTL(bctla、ct9、c16a-c16c和cs5-cs12)对表型变异的贡献率(简称贡献率)大于30％。这些高贡献率QTL可能对旱田条件下旱稻抗倒伏分子育种有重要意义。     

Investigation of cell wall composition related to stem lodging resistance in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) by FTIR spectroscopy

We explored the rapid qualitative analysis of wheat cultivars with good lodging resistances by Fourier transform infrared resonance (FTIR) spectroscopy and multivariate statistical analysis. FTIR imaging showing that wheat stem cell walls were mainly composed of cellulose, pectin, protein, and lignin. Principal components analysis (PCA) was used to eliminate multicollinearity among multiple peak absorptions. PCA revealed the developmental internodes of wheat stems could be distributed from low to high along the load of the second principal component, which was consistent with the corresponding bands of cellulose in the FTIR spectra of the cell walls. Furthermore, four distinct stem populations could also be identified by spectral features related to their corresponding mechanical properties via PCA and cluster analysis. Histochemical staining of four types of wheat stems with various abilities to resist lodging revealed that cellulose contributed more than lignin to the ability to resist lodging. These results strongly suggested that the main cell wall component responsible for these differences was cellulose. Therefore, the combination of multivariate analysis and FTIR could rapidly screen wheat cultivars with good lodging resistance. Furthermore, the application of these methods to a much wider range of cultivars of unknown mechanical properties promises to be of interest.     

Effects of seeding rate and plant density on sclerotinia stem rot incidence in canola

Abstract

Sclerotinia stem rot (Sclerotinia sclerotiorum Lib. deBary) affects canola wherever it is grown. Seeding rates, which are believed to affect the microclimate beneath the canopy, were evaluated for their impact on sclerotinia stem rot incidence. A study with five seeding rates (2.2 kg/ha, 3.3 kg/ha, 6.7 kg/ha, 13.3 kg/ha and 20.0 kg/ha) and four canola cultivars chosen for their variation in canopy structure and lodging resistance was conducted in Carman, Manitoba, Canada, in 2001 to 2003. A significant relationship between sclerotinia stem rot disease incidence (DI) and seeding rate was found. With an increase in seeding rate, the DI was significantly increased in the mean of the canola cultivars, and individually, only in the lodging-prone cultivar AC Excel. Lodging significantly increased for all cultivars when seeding rates exceeded the standard 6.7 kg/ha. Multiple regression analysis revealed that both plant density and lodging explain the majority of the variation in DI. Both plant density and lodging resistance varied in having a larger influence on DI depending on the year and cultivar analysed. Our results indicate that increasing seeding rate does modify the microenvironment and increases the potential for lodging, which may be responsible for plant-to-plant spread of this disease.     

水稻穗型与抗倒伏性关系的初步分析

理论分析和物理模拟测定的结果表明,穗型通过使茎秆弯曲的力矩-弯矩和重心高度影响抗倒伏性:弯矩增大和重心升高,抗倒伏性降低;反之,则抗倒伏性升高.弯矩随颈穗弯曲度变化的幅度明显大于重心,因此,弯曲穗型弯矩增加的幅度大而重心降低的幅度小,对抗倒伏性的影响明显大于直立穗型,这可能是北方粳稻直立穗型品种一般抗倒伏性较强的力学基础.     

Brittle stalk 2 encodes a putative glycosylphosphatidylinositol-anchored protein that affects mechanical strength of maize tissues by altering the composition and structure of secondary cell walls

A spontaneous maize mutant, brittle stalk-2 (bk2-ref), exhibits dramatically reduced tissue mechanical strength. Reduction in mechanical strength in the stalk tissue was highly correlated with a reduction in the amount of cellulose and an uneven deposition of secondary cell wall material in the subepidermal and perivascular sclerenchyma fibers. Cell wall accounted for two-thirds of the observed reduction in dry matter content per unit length of the mutant stalk in comparison to the wildtype stalk. Although the cell wall composition was significantly altered in the mutant in comparison to the wildtype stalks, no compensation by lignin and cell wall matrix for reduced cellulose amount was observed. We demonstrate that Bk2 encodes a Cobra-like protein that is homologous to the rice Bc1 protein. In the bk2-ref gene, a 1 kb transposon-like element is inserted in the beginning of the second exon, disrupting the open reading frame. The Bk2 gene was expressed in the stalk, husk, root, and leaf tissues, but not in the embryo, endosperm, pollen, silk, or other tissues with comparatively few or no secondary cell wall containing cells. The highest expression was in the isolated vascular bundles. In agreement with its role in secondary wall formation, the expression pattern of the Bk2 gene was very similar to that of the ZmCesA10, ZmCesA11, and ZmCesA12 genes, which are known to be involved in secondary wall formation. We have isolated an independent Mutator-tagged allele of bk2, referred to as bk2-Mu7, the phenotype of which is similar to that of the spontaneous mutant. Our results demonstrate that mutations in the Bk2 gene affect stalk strength in maize by interfering with the deposition of cellulose in the secondary cell wall in fiber cells.