Response to two cycles of divergent selection for grain yield under drought stress in four rice breeding populations

Drought is a major production constraint in rainfed rice (Oryza sativa L.). Lack of effective selection criteria is a major limitation hampering progress in breeding for drought tolerance. In an earlier report, we showed in two populations that one cycle of direct selection was effective in increasing grain yield under stress. In the present study, we retested the efficiency of direct selection for grain yield under drought stress in rice using four populations derived from crossing upland-adapted, drought-tolerant varieties (Apo, Vandana) to high-yielding, lowland-adapted, drought-susceptible varieties (IR64, IR72). Each population was subjected to two cycles of divergent selection either under drought stress in upland or under nonstress conditions in lowland conditions. Following selection, approximately 40 high-yielding lines selected under each protocol from each population, along with a set of unselected lines, were evaluated in a series of selection response trials over a range of moisture levels. Significant response to direct selection under stress was realized in 9 out of 15 combinations of populations and stress environments, and in 6 of the 7 severe stress trials. Averaging over all the populations and stress environments, the stress-selected lines had a yield advantage of 25 and 37% over nonstress-selected and random lines, respectively. In contrast to this, under nonstress, the nonstress-selected lines had an average yield advantage of only 7 and 13% over stress-selected and random lines, respectively. Direct selection in managed stress trials during dry seasons gave significant response (25% on average relative to indirect selection in nonstress conditions) under naturally occurring wet season stress. In addition, direct selection under stress in upland gave an average gain of 16 and 45% over nonstress-selected and random lines, respectively, under stress in lowland. The yield advantage of the stress-selected lines appears to result mainly from maintenance of higher harvest index. These results show that direct selection for grain yield under stress is effective and does not reduce yield potential. Overall, this is the first report in rice demonstrating that (a) selection under managed drought stress in the dry season can result in yield gains under natural stress in the wet season, and (b) that selection under upland drought stress can, at least under the conditions of the present study, result in gains under lowland drought conditions.     

Genetic analysis of rainfed lowland rice drought tolerance under naturally-occurring stress in eastern India: Heritability and QTL effects

Drought tolerance is an important rainfed rice breeding objective, but because the heritability (H) of yield under drought stress is thought to be low, secondary physiological traits are considered better targets for selection than yield under stress per se. This assumption has rarely been tested, and there are no reports on H for yield under drought stress from experiments repeated over seasons in rainfed lowland rice. To assess the potential for improving yield under drought stress via direct selection, and to identify associated quantitative trait loci (QTL), doubled haploid lines with a narrow range of flowering dates, derived from the population CT9993-5-10-1-M/IR62266-42-6-2, were screened under full irrigation and severe drought stress induced by draining the paddy before flowering in 2000–2002 at Raipur, India. Drought stress reduced mean yield by 80%. H was similar in stress and non-stress trials, as was the relative magnitude of the genotype and genotype × year variances. The genetic correlation between yield in stress and non-stress conditions was 0.8, indicating that about 64% of the genetic variation for yield under stress was accounted for by differences in yield potential also expressed in irrigated environments. These results indicate that direct selection for yield under drought stress can produce yield gains under stress without reducing yield potential. There was no secondary trait for which selection resulted in greater predicted response in yield under stress than direct selection for stress yield per se. A QTL was detected on chromosome 1 near sd1 that explained 32% of the genetic variation for yield under stress, but only 4% under non-stress. Its effect was consistent across years. This QTL accounted for much of the variation in drought yield not accounted for by variation in yield potential.     

Improvement of rice drought tolerance through backcross breeding: Evaluation of donors and selection in drought nurseries

A large-scale backcross breeding project has been undertaken to improve drought tolerance in rice. Over 160 donor cultivars from 25 countries have been used in this project, representing a significant proportion of the genetic variation in cultivated rice. These cultivars were evaluated in field experiments in the Philippines to assess their responses to drought in terms of plant height, heading date, and grain yield. Drought was imposed near heading stage, in experiments that were established either in lowland (anaerobic) fields or upland (aerobic) soil. Despite the poor adaptation of some cultivars to the tropics, it was possible to identify significant variation in plant response to drought treatments, and contrasting effects on flowering delay and growth. Subsequently, 325 BC₂F₂ bulk populations, developed by backcrossing many of these donors to one of three elite recurrent parents, were screened under drought in lowland or upland nurseries. Stress levels were managed to eliminate almost all seed set in recurrent parents, and those progeny that produced grain were selected as being putatively drought-tolerant. The selection intensity varied across years and in selection environments with more severe stress, higher selection intensity could be imposed. The number of plants selected within a population was not associated with the per se drought response of the donors in the direct evaluation, indicating the wide presence of cryptic genetic variation for drought tolerance in the apparently drought-susceptible cultivars. The genetic background of the recurrent parent affected the number of plants selected, as did the selection environment (upland versus lowland nurseries). These drought-selected introgression lines represent a useful genetic resource to develop improved cultivars for farmers in rainfed or water-scarce rice-growing regions, and also to improve our understanding of the genetic and molecular basis of drought tolerance in rice. Genetic analysis of the selected lines, reported elsewhere, indicated specific regions of high introgression. Yield evaluations of the selected lines are now underway across a range of drought scenarios.     

Rice near-isogenic-lines (NILs) contrasting for grain yield under lowland drought stress

The development of near-isogenic-lines (NILs) is a very important tool for both genetic and physiological dissection of drought resistance in rice. Two pairs of NILs differing for grain yield under drought stress were isolated and characterized for yield, yield related traits, and several physiological traits in a range of contrasting environments. In replicated field trials both NIL pairs differed significantly for grain yield under drought stress but showed similar yield potential, phenology, and yield component traits under non-stress conditions. A polymorphism analysis study with 491 SSRs revealed that both NIL pairs are at least 96% genetically similar. These NILs show that small genetic differences can cause large difference in grain yield under drought stress in rice. In both pairs the drought-tolerant NILs showed a significantly higher assimilation rate at later stages both under stress and non-stress conditions. They also had a higher transpiration rate under non-stress condition. The most tolerant NIL (IR77298-14-1-2-B-10) had significantly higher transpiration rate and stomatal conductance in severe stress conditions. In one pair the tolerant NIL had constitutively deeper roots than the susceptible NIL. In the second pair, which had higher mean root length than the first pair, the tolerant NIL had more roots, greater root thickness, and greater root dry weight than the susceptible NIL. Deeper root length may allow tolerant NILs to extract more water at deeper soil layers. It is concluded that enhanced rooting depth is an important strategy for dehydration avoidance and rice adaptation to drought stress, but root architecture might not be the only mechanism causing the significant yield increase we observed in lowland drought stress environments. To further dissect the drought avoidance mechanisms in rice, analysis of root hydraulic properties may be necessary.     

Development of drought-resistant cultivars using physiomorphological traits in rice

Drought is a major problem for rice grown under rainfed lowland and upland conditions, but progress in breeding to improve drought resistance has been slow. This paper describes patterns of water-stress development in rice fields, reviews genetic variation in physio-morphological traits for drought resistance in rice, and suggests how knowledge of stress physiology can contribute to plant breeding programmes that aim to increase yield in water-limiting environments. To provide a basis for integrating physiological research with plant-breeding objectives we define drought resistance in terms of relative yield of genotypes. Therefore, a drought-resistant genotype will be one which has a higher grain yield than others when all genotypes are exposed to the same level of water stress.A major reason for the slow progress in breeding for drought resistance in rice is the complexity of the drought environment, which often results in the lack of clear identification of the target environment(s). There is a need to identify the relative importance of the three common drought types; early-season drought which often causes delay in transplanting, mild intermittent stress which can have a severe cumulative effect, and late stress which affects particularly late-maturing genotypes. In addition, in rainfed lowland rice, flooded and non-flooded soil conditions may alternate during the growing season, and affect nutrient availability or cause toxicity.Several drought-resistance mechanisms, and putative traits which contribute to them, have been identified for rice; important among these being drought escape via appropriate phenology, root characteristics, specific dehydration avoidance and tolerance mechanisms, and drought recovery. Some of these mechanisms/traits have been shown to confer drought resistance and others show potential to do so in rice. The most important is the appropriate phenology which matches crop growth and development with the water environment. A deep root system, with high root length density at depth is useful in extracting water thoroughly in upland conditions, but does not appear to offer much scope for improving drought resistance in rainfed lowland rice where the development of a hard pan may prevent deep root penetration. Under water-limiting environments, genotypes which maintain the highest leaf water potential generally grow best, but it is not known if genotypic variation in leaf water potential is solely caused by root factors. Osmotic adjustment is promising, because it can potentially counteract the effects of a rapid decline in leaf water potential and there is large genetic variation for this trait. There is genotypic variation in expression of green leaf retention which appears to be a useful character for prolonged droughts, but it is affected by plant size which complicates its use as a selection criterion for drought resistance.There is a general lack of drought related research for rice in rainfed lowland conditions. This needs to be rectified, particularly considering their importance relative to upland conditions in Asian countries. We suggest that focussing physiological-genetic research efforts onto clearly defined, major target environments should provide a basis for increasing the relevance of stress physiology and the efficiency of breeding programmes for development of drought-resistant genotypes.     

Yield response of rice (Oryza sativa L.) genotypes to drought under rainfed lowlands: 2. Selection of drought resistant genotypes

Drought frequently reduces grain yield of rainfed lowland rice. A series of experiments were conducted in drought-prone northeast Thailand to study the magnitude and consistency of yield responses of diverse, rainfed lowland rice genotypes to drought stress environments and to examine ways to identify genotypes that confer drought resistance. One hundred and twenty-eight genotypes were grown under non-stress and four different types of drought stress conditions. The relationship of genotypic variation in yield under drought conditions to genetic yield potential, flowering time and flowering delay, and to a drought response index (DRI) that removed the effect of potential yield and flowering time on yield under stress was examined.Drought stress that developed prior to flowering generally delayed the time of flowering of genotypes, and the delay in flowering was negatively associated with grain yield, fertile panicle percentage and filled grain percentage. Genotypes with a longer delay in flowering time had extracted more water during the early drought period, and as a consequence, had higher water deficits. They were consistently associated with a larger yield reduction under drought and in one experiment with a smaller DRI. Genotypes, however, responded differently to the different drought stress conditions and there was no consistency in the DRI estimates for the different genotypes across the drought stress experiments. The results indicate that with the use of irrigated-control and drought test environments, genotypes with drought resistance can be identified by using DRI or delay in flowering. However, selections will differ depending on the type of drought condition. The inconsistency of the estimates in DRI and flowering delay across different drought conditions reflects the nature of the large genotype-by-environment interactions observed for grain yield under various types of drought in rainfed lowland conditions.     

Evaluation of Agronomic Traits in Chromosome Segment Substitution Lines of KDML105 Containing Drought Tolerance QTL under Drought Stress

Drought is a major abiotic constraint to rice production in rainfed lowland and insufficiently irrigated areas.The improvement of drought tolerant varieties is one of the strategies to reduce the negative effects of drought.Quantitative trait loci(QTLs) for primary and secondary traits related to drought tolerance(DT) on chromosomes 1,3,4,8 and 9 that determined from double haploid lines derived from a cross between CT9993 and IR62266 were introgressed and dissected into small pieces in the genetic background of Khao Dawk Mali 105(KDML105) to develop chromosome segment substitution line(CSSL) population.The CSSLs were evaluated at the reproductive stage for their agronomic performance and yield components under drought stress,and results were compared with irrigated condition.The flowering of CSSL lines was 6 to 7 d earlier than KDML105.The mean values of grain yields in the CSSLs were higher than KDML105 under drought and irrigated conditions.At irrigated condition,the grain yields of introgression lines carrying DT-QTLs from chromosomes 4 and 8 were higher than that of KDML105,whereas other traits showed little difference with KDML105.Analysis indicated that grain yield has positive correlation with plant height,tiller and panicle number per plant,and total grain weight per plant under drought stress while negatively correlated with days to flowering.As mentioned above,CSSLs showing good adaptation under drought stress can be used as genetic materials to improve drought tolerance in Thai rainfed lowland rice breeding program,and as materials to dissect genes underlying drought tolerance.     

Developing rice cultivars for high-fertility upland systems in the Asian tropics

Traditionally, upland rice is grown in Asia in low-input, subsistence systems. More productive upland systems, using more fertilizer and improved varieties, are emerging in China and Philippines, and could contribute to productivity increases in rainfed environments in other countries. Here, we evaluate, on-station and on-farm, the yield under upland management of improved indica upland cultivars selected for yield under high-fertility conditions. These cultivars are compared with traditional and improved tropical japonica upland varieties, and with elite indica high-yielding varieties (HYV) developed for irrigated lowland production, to characterize the features of varieties that produce high yields in favorable upland environments. Forty-four improved and traditional varieties and experimental lines were evaluated in irrigated lowland, non-stressed upland, moderately stressed upland, severely water-stressed upland, and low-fertility upland environments in southern Luzon, Philippines. Correlations between yields in non-stress and mild-stress environments were low but positive. Some cultivars, like IR55423-01, were among the highest yielding under both conditions, indicating that high yield and moderate water-stress tolerance can be combined. Upland-selected indica varieties yielded 3.56 t ha⁻¹ in favorable upland environments on-station in southern Luzon, outperforming improved tropical japonica and irrigated varieties by 23 and 69%, respectively. They were also the highest-yielding class in infertile, acid soils. The improved upland indica cultivars are about 110 cm tall under favorable upland conditions and maintain a harvest index of nearly 0.4, or about one-third higher than other cultivar types. The best upland-adapted rice varieties produced average yields on-farm of 3.3 and 4.1 t ha⁻¹ in southern Luzon and Yunnan, respectively, outyielding traditional checks by 30–50% with moderate N application. Screening under both high-fertility, non-stress conditions and moderate reproductive-stage stress appears to be needed to develop cultivars combining high-yield potential with drought tolerance. Upland-adapted indica cultivars offer a new approach to increasing productivity and reducing risk in Asian rainfed rice systems.     

Growth and Yield of New Rice for Africa (NERICAs) under Different Ecosystems and Nitrogen Levels

Abstract

Scarcity of water and N fertilizer are major constraints to rice production, particularly in developing countries where rainfed upland condition dominates. Improvement of genetic adaptability to inadequate water and N fertilizer is one option to maintain productivity in these regions. NERICAs are expected to yield higher under low input conditions, but growth and yield responses of the cultivars to different ecosystems and N levels remain unknown. The objectives of this study were to characterize the growth and yield performance of NERICAs, in comparison with selected Japanese rice cultivars. The two NERICAs (NERICA 1 and NERICA 5), two Japanese upland cultivars (Toyohatamochi and Yumenohatamochi), and a Japanese lowland cultivar Hitomebore were grown under two ecosystems (irrigated lowland (IL) and rainfed upland (RU)) with two N levels (high (H) and low (L)) for two years. The cultivar difference in the aboveground dry weight and grain yield was the largest in the in RU × L plot, where the values of NERICAs were similar to those in the other plots, but the values of other cultivars were substantially reduced. Regardless of cultivar, N contents of the plants at maturity correlated significantly with the aboveground dry weight at maturity, spikelet number and grain yield per area. These results indicate that NERICAs, compared with the selected Japanese upland cultivars that were bred for drought tolerance, have a higher ability to absorb N under upland conditions, which may contribute to higher biomass production and sink formation, resulting in increased gain yield.     

Genetic analysis and validation of quantitative trait loci associated with reproductive-growth traits and grain yield under drought stress in a doubled haploid line population of rice (Oryza sativa L.)

Drought is a major constraint for rice production and yield stability in rainfed ecosystems, especially when it occurs during the reproductive stage. Combined genetic and physiological analysis of reproductive-growth traits and their effects on yield and yield components under drought stress is important for dissecting the biological bases of drought resistance and for rice yield improvement in water-limited environments. A subset of a doubled haploid (DH) line population of CT9993-5-10-1-M/IR62266-42-6-2 was evaluated for variation in plant water status, phenology, reproductive-growth traits, yield and yield components under reproductive-stage drought stress and irrigated (non-stress) conditions in the field. Since this DH line population was previously used in extensive quantitative trait loci (QTLs) mapping of various drought resistance component traits, we aimed at identifying QTLs for specific reproductive-growth and yield traits and also to validate the consensus QTLs identified earlier in these DH lines using meta-analysis. DH lines showed significant variation for plant water status, reproductive-growth traits, yield and yield components under drought stress. Total dry matter, number of panicles per plant, harvest index, panicle harvest index, panicle fertility, pollen fertility, spikelet fertility and hundred grain weight had significant positive correlations with grain yield under drought stress. A total of 46 QTLs were identified for the various traits under stress and non-stress conditions with phenotypic effect ranging from 9.5 to 35.6% in this study. QTLs for panicle exsertion, peduncle length and pollen fertility, identified for the first time in this study, could be useful in marker-assisted breeding (MAB) for drought resistance in rice. A total of 97 QTLs linked to plant growth, phenology, reproductive-growth traits, yield and its components under non-stress and drought stress, identified in this study as well as from earlier published information, were subjected to meta-analysis. Meta-analysis identified 23 MQTLs linked to plant phenology and production traits under stress conditions. Among them, four MQTLs viz., 1.3 for plant height, 3.1 for days to flowering, 8.1 for days to flowering or delay in flowering and 9.1 for days to flowering are true QTLs. Consensus QTLs for reproductive-growth traits and grain yield under drought stress have been identified on chromosomes 1 and 9 using meta-QTL analysis in these DH lines. These MQTLs associated with reproductive-growth, grain yield and its component traits under drought stress could be useful targets for drought resistance improvement in rice through MAB and/or map-based positional analysis of candidate genes.     

Yield response of rice (Oryza sativa L.) genotypes to drought under rainfed lowland: 3. Plant factors contributing to drought resistance

A series of experiments were conducted in drought-prone northeast Thailand to examine the magnitude of yield responses of diverse genotypes to drought stress environments and to identify traits that may confer drought resistance to rainfed lowland rice. One hundred and twenty eight genotypes were grown under non-stress and four different types of drought stress conditions.Under severe drought conditions, the maintenance of PWP of genotypes played a significant role in determining final grain yield. Because of their smaller plant size (lower total dry matter at anthesis) genotypes that extracted less soil water during the early stages of the drought period, tended to maintain higher PWP and had a higher fertile panicle percentage, filled grain percentage and final grain yield than other genotypes. PWP was correlated with delay in flowering (r=−0.387) indicating that the latter could be used as a measure of water potential under stress. Genotypes with well-developed root systems extracted water too rapidly and experienced severe water stress at flowering. RPR which showed smaller coefficient of variation was more useful than root mass density in identifying genotypes with large root system.Under less severe and prolonged drought conditions, genotypes that could achieve higher plant dry matter at anthesis were desirable. They had less delay in flowering, higher grain yield and higher drought response index, indicating the importance of ability to grow during the prolonged stress period.Other shoot characters (osmotic potential, leaf temperature, leaf rolling, leaf death) had little effect on grain yield under different drought conditions. This was associated with a lack of genetic variation and difficulty in estimating trait values precisely.Under mild stress conditions (yield loss less than 50%), there was no significant relationship between the measured drought characters and grain yield. Under these mild drought conditions, yield is determined more by yield potential and phenotype than by drought resistant mechanisms per se.     

Introgression of Two Drought QTLs into FUNAABOR-2 Early Generation Backcross Progenies Under Drought Stress at Reproductive Stage

FUNAABOR-2 is a popular Ofada rice variety grown in a large area under rainfed upland condition across western states of Nigeria. We used the combination of phenotypic and marker-assisted selection(MAS) to improve grain yield of FUNAABOR-2 under drought stress(DS) at the reproductive stage via introgression of two drought quantitative trait loci(QTLs), qDTY12.1 and qDTY2.3. Foreground selection was carried out using peak markers RM511 and RM250, associated with qDTY12.1 and qDTY2.3, respectively, followed by recombinant selection with RM28099 and RM1261 distally flanking qDTY12.1. Furthermore, BC1 F2-derived introgressed lines and their parents were evaluated under DS and non-stress(NS) conditions during the 2015–2016 dry season. Overall reduction of grain yield under DS compared to NS was recorded. Introgressed lines with qDTY12.1 and qDTY2.3 combinations showed higher yield potential compared to lines with single or no QTL under DS, indicating significant positive interactions between the two QTLs under the FUNAABOR-2 genetic background. Pyramiding of qDTY12.1 and qDTY2.3 in the FUNAABOR-2 genetic background led to higher grain yield production under DS and NS.     

Yield and yield-attributing traits of rice (Oryza sativa L.) under lowland drought and suitability of early vigor as a selection criterion

Fifteen experiments testing seven sets of genotypes under irrigated non-stress and drought stress situations were conducted from 2004 to 2006 with the objective to study the effect of different severity levels of drought on tolerant and susceptible advanced breeding lines, current varieties, and traditional and improved donors, and to study the effect of selection for high early vigor on yield. With the onset of drought, a yield reduction due to a decrease in biomass was observed in both susceptible and tolerant lines. However, after an initial reduction in yield, tolerant lines were able to sustain a yield loss more effectively than susceptible lines by better maintenance of biomass and higher harvest index. Under intermittent drought stress, genotypes with the ability to maintain higher biomass, reflected in terms of high early vigor recorded 3 wk after transplanting, recorded higher grain yield than genotypes with low early vigor. Lines with high early vigor yielded higher under both irrigated non-stress and intermittent drought stress situations. Under intermittent stress, plants with high vigor, low vigor, or random plants with high or low vigor coming from tolerant × susceptible crosses yielded higher than did the plants with the same vigor coming from susceptible × susceptible crosses. Under both irrigated non-stress and intermittent drought stress situations, early vigor showed significant genetic correlation with grain yield and could be included as an efficient selection criterion to improve yield in the lowlands.     

Association and Heritability Studies for Drought Resistance under Varied Moisture Stress Regimes in Backcross Inbred Population of RiceAssociation and Heritability Studies for Drought Resistance under Varied Moisture Stress Regimes in Backcross Inbred Population of Rice

Drought stress is one of the major constraints affecting rice production and yield stability in the rainfed regions. To understand the physiological basis of drought resistance related component traits, we used a backcross inbred population of rice under three kinds of moisture regimes viz., non-stress, moderate （24.48%） and severe stress （73.97%） conditions which reflect the differential responses of the genotypes to varying stress intensities. The plot yield, 1000-grain weight, panicle exsertion and canopy air temperature difference exhibited high heritability under the control conditions, whereas spikelet sterility and single plant yield exhibited high heritability under the moderate stress conditions. Traits such as days to 50% flowering, plant height and osmotic potential showed high heritability under the severe stress conditions. Plot yield under stress was significantly and positively correlated with harvest index and 1000-grain weight, but negatively associated with leaf rolling score and days to 50% flowering. The drought susceptibility index and drought response index were negatively correlated between each other both under the moderate and severe stress conditions. The derived traits viz., difference in panicle length between the control and the severe stress was associated with osmotic adjustment measured under field conditions. Difference in plant height and panicle length was negatively associated with plot yield under stress.     

玉米开花期耐旱相关性状的遗传及育种策略

玉米对干旱的反应取决于新陈代谢能力、形态结构和生育阶段.开花期逢遇干旱使玉米产量下降幅度最大.随着产量下降,环境方差所占比例增大,遗传力降低,直接选择效率不高.在干旱条件下,寻找遗传力高且与产量高度相关的第二类性状,构建选择指标,可提高耐旱选择效率.雌雄开花间隔天数(ASI)和单株穗数是可供利用的第二类性状,对其选择所获得的产量增益,在干旱和正常水分条件下均可表现出来.耐旱育种目的在于改变基因型对干旱环境的反应,实现耐旱丰产目标.根据目标环境特征,设计适宜的耐旱选择程序,结合分子标记辅助选择技术,鉴定和利用现有优良耐旱种质和CIMMYT耐旱群体,是我国进行耐旱育种和种质改良的可选途径。     

栽培稻抗旱性研究的现状与策略

 水资源短缺正成为制约我国农业发展的重要因素。培育抗旱的栽培稻品种并实现水稻旱作，不但可在很大程度上节约水资源，而且有利于增产稳产，节约能源和减少环境污染。抗旱性包括逃旱性、避旱性、耐旱性和复原抗旱性。形态生理学的研究揭示出大量的与栽培稻抗旱性有关的形态特征和生理特性，如根系和叶片性状、生育期、渗透调节、脱落酸含量与栽培稻抗旱性密切相关，且已利用分子标记对上述性状进行了基因定位（QTL）研究。旱稻品种改良也已取得重大进展。在进行抗旱品种改良的基础上，通过引进相应的栽培技术，节水种植，实现水稻旱作，并达到稳产与增产的目的，是抗旱性研究的战略目标。在增产、稳产和优质的前提下，以培育耐旱性极强的水稻（或旱稻）为中心，建立有代表性的抗旱性研究基地, 进一步加强稻属抗旱基因资源的发掘和创新、抗旱生理学和遗传学的研究、利用现代生物技术实现不同物种间抗旱基因的转移、建立节水种植栽培技术新体系是目前抗旱性研究的主要内容。     

水分胁迫对节水抗旱稻产量形成和根系形态生理特性的影响

目的 探究节水抗旱稻组合旱优73在不同灌溉条件下产量形成特点及其根系形态生理的变化情况。方法 以节水抗旱稻旱优73和高产水稻H优518为材料,通过根管试验设置三种水分处理(常规灌溉、轻度水分胁迫、重度水分胁迫),调查株高、分蘖、根系形态特征和生理特性以及产量构成因素,分析性状之间的关系,探究不同程度水分胁迫对旱优73和H优518产量形成和根系形态生理的影响及其差异。结果 两年的重复试验结果表明,与常规灌溉相比,在轻度水分胁迫下,旱优73的产量及其构成因素无显著变化,H优518的产量在两年内平均减少了25.6%,每穗粒数、结实率、千粒重也显著降低;在重度水分胁迫下,两品种产量及其构成因素均显著降低,其中,旱优73的产量两年内平均减少了28.8%,H优518产量减少了46.1%。与常     

Improvement of Rice Production under Drought Conditions in West Africa: Application of QTLs in Breeding for Drought Resistance

Rice plays a paramount role in food and nutrition security in many West African countries. Despite the doubling of production during the last decade, rice consumption has grown faster, creating a deficit between the demand and supply. Although the West African sub-region remains the main rice-producing centre on the continent, production is severely hampered by biotic and abiotic stresses. Drought is one of the factors that most severely reduce grain yields of rice. Systems of production need to be established in order to mitigate yield loss as a result of drought. This review discusses the effects of drought on rice production in West Africa and its mitigation with an emphasis on the improvement of tolerance to drought stress. Yield stability can be achieved by developing drought-tolerant varieties through several processes encompassing profiling of known QTLs and identification of new ones, marker-assisted selection, genomic selection, and extensive multi-locational yield trials. We suggest a comprehensive strategy for breeding drought-tolerant rice varieties in West Africa.     

植物生长物质冠菌素诱导旱稻、水稻幼苗抗旱性的效应及生理机制

以旱稻 297 和水稻越富幼苗为材料,在 20% PEG 模拟干旱条件下,研究了植物生长物质冠菌素处理对叶片水分状况、质膜透性、渗透调节物质（脯氨酸、可溶性糖和可溶性蛋白）及内源激素（ABA、IAA 和GA3）含量的影响。干旱胁迫下,冠菌素处理可以维持旱稻 297（0.01 μmol/L）和越富（0.1 μmol/L）较高的叶片相对含水量,促进幼苗叶片中脯氨酸、可溶性糖和可溶性蛋白的积累,降低质膜透性,维持细胞质膜的完整性;同时,冠菌素（0.01 和0.1 μmol/L）处理明显促进旱稻 297 和越富幼苗叶片中ABA的积累,并改变了 IAA 和GA3 的浓度及比例。冠菌素处理能改善旱稻和水稻幼苗耐干旱胁迫的能力,最适浓度分别为0.01 μmol/L和0.1 μmol/L。     

Large-scale screening for maize drought resistance using multiple selection criteria evaluated under water-stressed and well-watered environments

A total of 550 maize inbred lines collected from global breeding programs were evaluated for drought resistance under both well-watered and water-stressed environments. The evaluation was based on multiple measurements of biomass taken before and after the drought stress was applied using the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), along with other selection criteria including anthesis-silking interval, leaf senescence, chlorophyll content, root capacitance, final grain yield, and grain yield components. Kernel weight was the most stable trait under drought stress. Correlations between the primary trait (grain yield) and the secondary traits, except the root capacitance and ASI under water-stressed condition, were all significant. Root capacitance had relatively low heritability and low genetic correlation with other drought resistance criteria, and is not recommended as a drought resistance criterion. Significant reduction of NDVI values measured in the afternoon when the leaves became rolling, compared to those measured in the morning when the leaves were open, provides a reliable index for leaf rolling, which however was not significantly correlated with grain yield. NDVIs measured across different developmental stages were highly correlated with each other and with most of the secondary traits as well as, grain yield, indicating that NDVI can be used as a secondary trait for large-scale drought resistance screening. Regression models built based on non-yield drought criteria and yield components explained about 40% and 95% of the variation for the grain yield, respectively. Some maize lines developed in China for temperate regions showed strong drought resistance comparable to tropical maize lines when tested under tropical condition, indicating that temperate lines with a wide adaptability can be used in drought resistance breeding for both temperate and tropical environments.