Super Rice Breeding in China

1. Dernand for super high yield rice in ChinaRice is one of the main staple food in China. Theperformance of rice sector in production and yield had been

Selection of wide compatible restorer lines and their application in hybrid rice breeding

Since the middle of 1980’s, wide compatibility(WC) rice lines have been screened by ricebreeders in China and applied in hybrid ricebreeding program. Several WC lines such asPecos, T984, Lunhui 422, and 02428 withideal agronomic characters were identified. Weincorporated the WC gene into restorer linesby crossing these japonica WC lines with ob-tained indica lines. Some WC restorer lineswith indica-japonica medium type were ob-tained and their application value in intersub-specific hybrid rice breeding were evaluated. 1. Effect of crossing methods on selectionefficiencies of WC restorer lines

Verification and evaluation of the “Three Optimums Theory”in rice breeding for maximum yield

Rice breeding for maximum yield is a hot topic today in the rice community of the world, and a hard nut to crack into the bargain. For many years, we have been devoted to the subject. In 1987 we discussed the subject in publications at home and abroad, in which we first introduced the general strategy of combining ideal plant morphology with the use of vigor. Afterward, drawing on the wisdoms of other researchers, we experimented with test materials featuring "rather short stalks" and "rather big panicles", but the results were not very satisfactory. Then, we switched from the "two rathers" to the "three optimums" (plant height, panicle size, and tillering ability). Three years’ (1991-1993) verification, especially the demonstra

Remarkable achievements in rice breeding was acquired in the China's “Eighth Five-year plan”

During the China’"Eighth Five-year Plan", the Chinese rice breeders developed hundreds of new rice varieties(combinations) which have higher yield, better rice quality or higher resistance. Among them, 83 new varieties (combinations) were released in the national or provincial levels. In addition, many new germplasms and excellence breeding materials were obtained which is rery useful for the rice breeding in the future.

An outline of rice breeding in China

Since the end of 1940s,China has ever taken breed-ing and popularization of elite varieties as the im-portant measures for yield increase of rice.About1,000 varieties and 100 hybrid rice combinationshave been developed,among which 284 ones haveonce been cultivated over an annual area of667,000 ha.There have been several

A historical review of hybrid rice breeding

The development of germplasm resources and advances in breeding methods have led to steady increases in yield and quality of rice (Oryza sativa L.). Three milestones in the recent history of rice breeding have contributed to these increases: dwarf rice breeding, hybrid rice breeding, and super rice breeding. On the 50th anniversary of the success of three-line hybrid rice,we highlight important scientific discoveries in rice breeding that were made by Chinese scientists and summarize the broader history of the field. We discuss the strategies that could be used in the future to optimize rice breeding further in the hope that China will continue to play a leading role in international rice breeding.

Methane Emission from Rice Fields:Necessity for Molecular Approach for Mitigation

Anthropogenic methane emissions are a leading cause of the increase in global averagetemperatures,often referred to as global warming.Flooded soils play a significant role in methaneproduction,where the anaerobic conditions promote the production of methane by methanogenicmicroorganisms.Rice fields contribute a considerable portion of agricultural methane emissions,as riceplants provide both factors that enhance and limit methane production.Rice plants harbor both methaneproducingand methane-oxidizing microorganisms.Exudates from rice roots provide source for methaneproduction,while oxygen delivered from the root aerenchyma enhances methane oxidation.Studies haveshown that the diversity of these microorganisms depends on rice cultivars with some genes characterizedas harboring specific groups of microorganisms related to methane emissions.However,there is still aneed for research to determine the balance between methane production and oxidation,as rice plantspossess the ability to regulate net methane production.Various agronomical practices,such as fertilizerand water management,have been employed to mitigate methane emissions.Nevertheless,studiescorrelating agronomic and chemical management of methane with productivity are limited.Moreover,evidences for breeding low-methane-emitting rice varieties are scattered largely due to the absence ofcoordinated breeding programs.Research has indicated that phenotypic characteristics,such as rootbiomass,shoot architecture,and aerenchyma,are highly correlated with methane emissions.This reviewdiscusses available studies that involve the correlation between plant characteristics and methaneemissions.It emphasizes the necessity and importance of breeding low-methane-emitting rice varieties inaddition to existing agronomic,biological,and chemical practices.The review also delves into the idealphenotypic and physiological characteristics of low-methane-emitting rice and potential breeding techniques,drawing from studies conducted with diverse varieties,mutants,and transgenic plants.

Retrospective and perspective of rice breeding in China

Breeding is the art and science of selecting and changing crop traits for the benefit of human beings. For several decades, tremendous efforts have been made by Chinese scientists in rice breeding in improving grain yield, nutrition quality, and environmental performance, achieving substantial progress for global food security. Several generations of crop breeding technologies have been developed, for example,selection of better performance in the field among variants(conventional breeding), application of molecular markers for precise selection(molecular marker assisted breeding), and development of molecular design(molecular breeding by rational design). In this review, we briefly summarize the advances in conventional breeding, functional genomics for genes and networks in rice that regulate important agronomic traits, and molecular breeding in China with focuses on high yield, good quality,stress tolerance, and high nutrient-use efficiency. These findings have paved a new avenue for rational design of crops to develop ideal varieties with super performance and productivity.

SAR-3——a resource of diploid true breeding hybrid rice

In 1988, we found strain 9003 from compositehybridization of indica and japonica. 9003 pos-sesses characteristics of twin seedlings withfrequency of 15-20% of the investigated popu-lation. The highest frequency was 45.68%.Afterwards, we discovered that some twinseedlings had variabilities in chromosome set.As to a pair of twin plants, it may be 2n-1n,2n-3n, 3n-3n or 1n-1n. The changes in chro-mosome set also occurred in the plants devel-oped from mono-embryo seeds. All of thesevariants nearly account for 1% in our con-trolled experiment. We named the triploidplants SAR-3 and found that SAR-3 could be aresource of diploid true breeding hybrid rice.

American glabrous rice utilized in breeding of super-high-yielding and good-quality varieties

The yield potential of current rice varieties has reached a high plateau and fluc-tuated within a narrow range. Based on the theory and practice of rice breedingfor super-high-yield, we put forward a concept of " Two high and one early",which means high biomass and high efficiency of light energy conversion, as wellas fast growing in the early growth stage. The agronomic characters of 15 U. S

An experiment of rice space-inducing breeding

The pure seeds of rice varieties Zaoxian 6188, D6049; late indica Minghui 63, Waiqi, and Xiangge 7301 ;late japonica Nonghu 6 and Bei K15 were carried by satellite 921006. After the satellite returned, we col-lected, planted, and tested the variances caused by space-inducing, with a part of seeds for each as CK on

A remarkable progress in breeding new rice line through gene engineering

Much progress has been made in the research of breeding new rice line through gene engineering by Life Science College of Fudan Univ, Shanghai, and the Plant Science Res Inst of Shanghai Acad of Agri. It was the first time internationally that the research adopted a man-combined gene, taking agrobacterium as car-

Breeding for multiresistant rice varieties

From 1977 to 1987, new rice varieties Xiangkang 32xuan 5, Xiangzaoxian 3 and HA79317—4 were bred. They had resistance to bacterial blight (BB), rice blast (BL), brown planthopper(BPH), whitebacked planthopper (WBPH), with high-yielding and good rice quality.

Breeding of near-isogenic japonica rice lines with three major genes for resistance to bacterial blight

From 1986 to 1993, a set of near-isogenic japonicarice Iines with three major genes Xα-3, Xα - 4,and Xα-12 for resistance to bacterial blight(Xan-thomonas oryzae pv.oryzae)were developed anddesignated as CBB3, CBB4, and CBB12 respective-

Fighting the enemy: How rice survives the blast pathogen's attack

Global food security is threatened by rice blast disease caused by the filamentous fungus Magnaporthe oryzae.An understanding of rice resistance mechanisms is fundamental to developing strategies for disease control.In this review,we summarize recent advances in pathogen-associated molecular pattern-triggered immunity,effector-triggered immunity,defense regulator-mediated immunity,and effects of nutrient elements on rice blast resistance.We outline strategies used for breeding rice cultivars with improved disease resistance.We also present the major research challenges for rice blast disease resistance and propose approaches for future investigation.

Progress and Prospect of Functional Rice Researches

With the rapid development of economy and the increase of people＇s living standards, functional foods are being gradually embraced by consumers and have a great growth potential. Rice is the main staple food in China. It plays an important role in promoting people＇s health and in improving public nutrition, and therefore there is an ever-increasing consumer demand for rice for its functional quality. This study introduces the concept of functional rice and summarizes the current research progress on this topic and the application of breeding strategies including traditional breeding, induced mutagenesis, molecular marker-assisted selection and transgenic engineering in the research of a new generation of functional rice that posses health benefits, therapeutic values, bioreactor properties, and other unique functions. We then point out the prospect of functional rice from the point of view of social development, germplasm innovation, breeding of functional rice by biological technology and the test of active material related functional rice. We conclude that developing and marketing of functional rice is becoming a subject of great importance for research and is to be the focus of research in future.

Status and Perspectives on the Researches of Rice Glutelin Mutants

Rice (Oryza sativa L. ) is one of the model plants for genomics research. As the raising of functional rice breeding for special usage, glutelin mutants play a more and more important role in the functional rice breeding as well as eukaryotic gene expression and regulation research materials. For example, the rice cultivar special for the patients suffering from kidney disease and diabetes could be developed from the rice glutelin mutants. In this paper, current researches on characterization, mutation mechanism and breeding usage of various rice glutelin mutants, especially the low glutelin content cultivars, were all discussed with perspectives on the trends of the glutelin mutant researches in the era of post-genomics.

Development of "Multi-Resistance Rice" by Pyramiding of Insect (Cry1C) and Blast Resistance (Pi1 and Pi2) Genes

[Objective] The paper was to improve the blast resistance of insect-resistant transgenic rice. [Method] The Japonica rice variety Jikang10, a new transgenic variety with exogenous insect-resistant gene Cry1C, was used as the receptor, and Kongyu 131, a traditional breeding variety with broad-spectrum high blast resistance genes Pi1 and Pi2, was used as the donor to breeding new rice varieties. The genes were polymerized by hybridization and multi-generation backcrossing, and the offspring of each generation was screened by molecular marker assisted selection, field identification of multi-resistance against insect pests and diseases and agronomic trait selection. [Result] Four lines SK01, SK02, SK03 and SK04 with better resistances to insect pests and blast and outstanding agronomic traits in field were selected. [Conclusion] The results will lay foundations for breeding new multi-resistance rice varieties in Huanghuai rice region.