Solutions to Insecurity Problems in Seed Production of Two-line Hybrid Rice

The insecure problems of seed production have seriously hampered the healthy and sustainable development of two-line hybrid rice.The safety issues on seed production of two-line hybrid rice and current research situation were pointed out in this paper.The three main reasons for unsafety in seed production of twoline hybrid rice were unsuitable site selection,high critical sterility-inducing temperature and the drift of critical temperature.In this paper,strategies and measures were put forward based on many years of practice.It could minimize the risk in seed production of two-line hybrid rice by selecting dual-purpose genic male sterile line with lower critical sterility-inducing temperature and long lower temperature resistant time.Based on the climate data and climatic demands of the ＂three safe-periods＂ in seed production,a new idea for determining appropriate bases and periods for seed production was proposed by using computer technology,which solved the aimless selection of sites and periods for the seed production of two-line hybrid rice.Besides,we established a system of single plant selection and identification method and original seed propagation with cyclic cold water,which could reduce the generation number of original seed propagation in seed production and avoid the drift of critical sterility-inducing temperature.This paper improved the seed production safety in the three aspects of seed nature,seed source and seed production site.

Effects of Nitrogen Quantity on Grain-filling Characters of Two-line Hybrid Rice with Large Ear

[Objective] The aim was to research effects of N quantity on grain-filling characters of two-line hybrid rice cultivars with large ears. [Method] Peiza 67 and 88, two-line hybridized rice with large ears, were made use of to study on effects of N fertilizer in different quantities （LN： 90 kg/hm2;MN： 180 kg/hm2;HN： 270 kg/hm2） on plumpness and grain-filling characters. [Result] When N fertilizers were excessive, for inferior grains, grain-filling rate decreased and grain-filling time extended, resulting in plumpness decline after degradation of leaves＇ function. When N fertilizers were inadequate, maximal and average grain-filling rates decreased and the differences between superior and inferior grains in grain-filling rate increased, leading to decline of grain＇s weight and plumpness degree. On the other hand, quantity of N fertilizers had little effect on superior grains in plumpness. [Conclusion] The research provided references for reasonable use of N fertilizer and improvement of rice yield and N use.

Breeding of National Authorized Two-line Hybrid Rice Yanliangyou 2208

The breeding processes, characteristics and comprehensive characters of two-line hybrid rice Yanliangyou 2208 and its parents （Yan 220S and Yanhui 888） taking part in the national rice regional test of southern rice regions were introduced. Yanliangyou 2208 was approved by the National Crop Variety Appraisal Committee in 2013. The achievement has been transformed successfully and has been applied in production. It has good development and promotion prospects.

Grain yield,nitrogen use efficiency and physiological performance of indica/japonica hybrid rice in response to various nitrogen rates

Utilizing the heterosis of indica/japonica hybrid rice(IJHR)is an effective way to further increase rice grain yield.Rational application of nitrogen(N)fertilizer plays a very important role in using the heterosis of IJHR to achieve its great yield potential.However,the responses of the grain yield and N utilization of IJHR to N application rates and the underlying physiological mechanism remain elusive.The purpose of this study was to clarify these issues.Three rice cultivars currently used in rice production,an IJHR cultivar Yongyou 2640(YY2640),a japonica cultivar Lianjing 7(LJ-7)and an indica cultivar Yangdao 6(YD-6),were grown in the field with six N rates(0,100,200,300,400,and 500 kg ha^(-1))in 2018 and 2019.The results showed that with the increase in N application rates,the grain yield of each test cultivar increased at first and then decreased,and the highest grain yield was at the N rate of 400 kg ha^(-1)for YY2640,with a grain yield of 13.4 t ha^(-1),and at 300 kg ha^(-1)for LJ-7 and YD-6,with grain yields of 9.4–10.6 t ha^(-1).The grain yield and N use efficiency(NUE)of YY2640 were higher than those of LJ-7 or YD-6 at the same N rate,especially at the higher N rates.When compared with LJ-7 or YD-6,YY2640 exhibited better physiological traits,including greater root oxidation activity and leaf photosynthetic rate,higher cytokinin content in the roots and leaves,and more remobilization of assimilates from the stem to the grain during grain filling.The results suggest that IJHR could attain both higher grain yield and higher NUE than inbred rice at either low or high N application rates.Improved shoot and root traits of the IJHR contribute to its higher grain yield and NUE,and a higher content of cytokinins in the IJHR plants plays a vital role in their responses to N application rates and also benefits other physiological processes.

Thoughts and Practice on Some Problems about Research and Application of Two-Line Hybrid Rice

The main problems about research and application of two-line hybrid rice were reviewed, including the confusing nomenclature and male sterile lines classification, the unclear characteristics of photoperiod and temperature responses and the unsuitable site selection for male sterile line and hybrid dce seed production. In order to efficiently and accurately use dual-purpose genic male sterile lines, four types, including PTGMS （photo-thermo-sensitive genic male sterile rice）, TGMS （thermo-sensitive genic male sterile rice）, reverse PTGMS and reverse TGMS, were proposed. A new idea for explaining the mechanism of sterility in dual-purpose hybrid rice was proposed. The transition from sterile to fertile was involved in the cooperative regulation of major-effect sterile genes and photoperiod and/or temperature sensitive ones. The minor-effect genes with accumulative effect on sterility were important factors that affected the critical temperature of sterility transfer. In order to make better use of dual-purpose lines, the characterization of responses to photoperiod and temperature of PTGMS should be made and the identification method for the characterization of photoperiod and temperature responses of PTGMS should also be put forward. The optimal ecological site for seed production could be determined according to the historical climate data and the requirements for the meteorological conditions during the different periods of seed production.

Research on Theories and Techniques of Irrigation for Safeguarding Seed Production of Two-Line Hybrid Rice

By inducing frequency, intensity and duration of lower temperature in the middle and last ten-day periods in August in the rice-growing areas of southern China, increasing temperature for safe seed production was defined as 2℃. During the sensitive period of fertility, characters of panicle height and canopy structure of TGMS rice, Pei＇ai64S, were measured. Results showed that temperature changes caused by irrigation in fields were below 40 cm of rice plant, and heating effect was significant at 20 cm when the temperature was increased by 3.1 ℃. For the present study, the following irrigation techniques were put forth： the water depth of 15-20 cm, current water used, irrigating after 17：00 and bailing at 10：00 in sunny or cloudy weather, irrigating on whole day, in shady or rainy weather, increasing inflows and outflows in large fields. In the present experiment, pollen fertility and self-fertilized seed setting rate accepted that the techniques were feasible and effective for against lower temperature and safeguarding seed production of two-line hybrid rice.

Causes of Poor Grain Plumpness of Two-Line Hybrids and Their Relationships to the Contents of Hormones in the Rice Grain

This study was designed to elucidate the grain filling characteristics and the causes of poor grain plumpness of some two-line hybrid rice combinations and their hormonal mechanism. Six varieties, including three two-line hybrid rice combinations, that show differences in seed-setting and grain filling, were used. And the contents of starch, sucrose, zeatin （Z） ＋ zeatin riboside （ZR）, indole-3-acetic acid （IAA）, and abscisic acid （ABA）, the ethylene evolution rate, activities of sucrose synthase （SuSase） and starch synthase （StSase） in grains, the seed-setting and grain filling rate were investigated. The correlations amongst these were analyzed. The results showed that the poor grain filling of two-line hybrids was mainly attributed to the higher unfilled grain rate and the lower filling degree of inferior grains. During the early and mid grain filling periods, the sucrose content in inferior grains was greater than that in superior grains for the combinations with poor grain filling, indicating that the substrate concentration was not the principal factor for their slow grain filling and poor grain plumpness of the inferior grains of two-line hybrids. Z ＋ ZR, IAA, and ABA in superior grains were obviously greater than those in inferior grains at early grain filling stage. The maximum and mean contents of Z ＋ ZR, IAA, and ABA were positively very significantly correlated with the maximum and mean grain-filling rate, filling degree, and grain weight. The evolution rate of ethylene was greater in inferior grains than in superior grains and greater for the combinations with poor grain plumpness than those with good grain plumpness at the early or mid filling stages. The evolution rate of ethylene was negatively and significantly correlated with the grain filling rate, the grain filling degree, and the grain weight. Spraying ethephon （ethylene-releasing agent） at the early grain filling stage increased the evolution rate of ethylene, reduced the ABA content and activities of SuSase and StSase, and decreased the grain filling degree and the grain weight. The results were reversed when cobatous nitrate （an inhibitor of ethylene synthesis） was applied. The results suggested that the hormones and their balance play a role in the regulation of grain filling and enzymatic activities, and the poor grain filling is attributed to the low contents of Z ＋ ZR, IAA, and ABA, and the high evolution rate of ethylene in the inferior grains of some two-line hybrid rice combinations. The results suggested that hormones play important roles in the grain filling of some two-line hybrid rice combinations, and their filling degree can be improved by regulating the hormonal contents.

Inheritance Pattern of Two-line Hybrid Rice Resistance to False Smut

[Objective] The aim of this study was to explore the inheritance pattern of the resistance of two-line hybrid rice to false smut. [Method] A moderate susceptible TGMS line 33S as the female parent, was crossed with 30 susceptible restorer lines and 23 resistant restorer lines. Then false smut resistance of the hybrid F1 and parents were identified. [Result] All F1 of 33S crossed with 30 susceptible re- storer lines were susceptible to rice false smut. The F1 of 33S crossed with 23 re- sistant restorer lines showed dominant, incompletely dominant or recessive inheri- tance. Dominant and incompletely dominant inheritance accounted for 87.0%. The diseased panicle rate, disease index, average diseased grains per panicle, and the highest diseased grains per panicle of F1 shared highly significant positive correla- tions with corresponding indicators of restorer lines. [Conclusion] This study provides references for genetic improvement of two-line hybrid rice.

Analysis on Genetic Differences between Parents of Two-line Medium Indica Hybrid Rice by SSR Markers

The genetic diversity of 50 parents or improved lines of two-line medium Indica hybrid rice were analyzed based on 48 pairs of SSR markers. The results showed that the clustering results were highly accordant with the parental pedigree information of the tested materials. The male sterile lines and the restoring lines were clustered into 2 distinct groups （Ⅰ and Ⅱ）, respectively. There were no significant difference in intra-group average genetic distances （GD） between the 2 groups. Most of the male sterile lines from Hunan Longping High-tech Seed Science Research Institute Co., Ltd. were grouped into a single subgroup （Ⅰ-4） under the male sterile group with the largest average GD compared with the rest male sterile subgroups. Huazhan derived lines and Guangzhou inbred lines were founded to be independent of 9311 and its derivatives or closely-related lines. Meanwhile, they have obviously been differentiated into 2 subgroups （Ⅱ-2 and Ⅱ-3）. The lines derived from Huazhan （or genetic closely related lines） showed a genetic homogenization phenomenon. Therefore, the Huazhan-derived lines should be further improved by the utilization of germplasms with good quality, high resistance and wide adaptability from Southern China to widen the GD between Huazhan derived lines and the male sterile subgroup developed by Hunan Longping High-tech Seed Science Research Institute Co., Ltd., so as to further promote the heterosis level between the groups.

Performance and High-Yield Cultural Techniques of Two-Line Hybrid Rice Xinlingyou998 at Direct Seeding Cultivation

Xinliangyou 998 is a new indica two-line hybrid rice variety using Xin＇er Sx H0998 as parent. The variety was introduced and demonstrated in Yingshan County in 2016, and showed intermediate growth duration, strong tillering ability, firm culm, tolerance to high fertility and resistance to lodging, tolerance to high tempera- ture and wide range of adaptation, etc. The high-yield cultural techniques were con- cluded.

Breeding of a Water-saving Drought-resistant Two-line Hybrid Rice Variety Wanliangyou 1008

Drought is one of the important factors limiting rice production,and the application of new water-saving rice varieties is urgently needed in rice production.Wanliangyou 1008 bred by Institute of Rice Research,Anhui Academy of Agricultural Sciences is a new two line hybrid rice variety with some good traits,including high drought resistance,high yield and good disease resistance.Wanlingyou 1008 was obtained by crossing drought-resistant high-quality restorer line DJ1008 and disease-resistant two-line sterile line Wan 25S.In this paper,the breeding process,characteristics and seed production technology of the variety were described in detail.

Study on High-yielding Seed Production Technologies of Japonica Hybrid Rice

[Objective] This study aimed to investigate the high-yielding seed production technologies of japonica hybrid rice. [Method] Key technologies affecting the seed production of japonica hybrid rice were investigated based on manual transplanting experiment, mechanical transplanting experiment, paclobutrazol chemical control experiment, leaf-clipping experiment, gibberellic acid treatment experiment and experiment of different row ratios of male and female parents. [Result] The duration from seeding to heading was significantly shortened with sowing date postponing. The sowing date of mechanical-transplanting parents should be 3 -4 d earlier than that of manual-transplanting parents. Spraying paclobutrazol had significantly control effect on plant height of rice seedlings, and the spraying dose should be determined based on the sensitivities of different parents to paclobutrazol, with an appropriate range of 600-900 g/hm2 . Leaf clipping had certain improving effect on the seed-setting rate. The appropriate spraying dose of gibberellin for japonica hybrid rice was 75-90 g/hm2 . The yield would be relatively high when row ratio of male and female parent was 6∶2. [Conclusion] This study laid the foundation for improving the yield of produced japonica hybrid rice seeds.

Suitable growing zone and yield potential for late-maturity type of Yongyou japonica/indica hybrid rice in the lower reaches of Yangtze River, China

Late-maturity type of Yongyou japonica/indica hybrids series （LMYS） have shown great yield potential, and are being widely planted in the lower reaches of Yangtze River, China. Knowledge about suitable growing zone and evaluation of yield advantage is of practicall importance for LMYS in this region. Fifteen LMYS, two high-yielding inbred japonica check varieties （CK-J） and two high-yielding hybrid indica check varieties （CK-I） were grown at Xinghua （119.57°E, 33.05°N） of Lixiahe region, Yangzhou （119.25°E, 32.30°N）of Yanjiang region, Changshu （120.46°E, 31.41°N）of Taihu Lake region, and Ningbo （121.31°E, 29.45°N） of Ningshao Plain in 2013 and 2014. The results showed that maturity dates of the 15 were later than the secure maturity date at Xinghua and 6, 14 and 15 LMYS were mature before the secure maturity date at Yangzhou, Changshu and Ningbo, respectively. One variety was identified as high-yielding variety among LMYS （HYYS） at Yangzhou, 8 HYYS in 201：3 and 9 HYYS in 2014 at Changshu, 9 HYYS at Ningbo. HYYS here referred to the variety among LMYS that was mature before the secure maturity date and had at least 8% higher grain yield than both CK-J and CK-I at each experimental site. Grain yield of HYYS at each experimental site was about 12.0 t ha-1 or higher, and was significantly higher than CK varieties. High yield of HYYS was mainly attributed to larger sink size due to more spikelets per panicle. Plant height of HYYS was about 140 cm, and was significantly higher than check varieties. Significant positive correlations were recorded between duration from heading to maturity stage and grain yield, and also between whole growth periods and grain yield. HYYS had obvious advantage over check varieties in biomass accumulation and leaf area duration from heading to maturity stage. Comprehensive consideration about safe matudty and yield performance of LMYS at each experimental site, Taihu Lake region （representative site Changshu） and Ningshao Plain （representative site Ningbo） were thought suitable growing zones for LMYS in the lower reaches of Yangtze River. The main factors underlying high yield ofHYYS were larger sink size, higher plant height, longer duration from heading to maturity stage and whole growth periods, and higher biomass accumulation and leaf area duration during grain filling stage.

Comparison of agronomic performance between inter-sub-specific hybrid and inbred japonica rice under different mechanical transplanting methods

Mechanical transplanting has been applied to rice cultivation to save labor costs and ease labor shortages in Asian countries, especially in China. However, little information is available related to the characteristics of agronomic performance when comparing inter-sub-specific hybrid rice(IHR) and inbred japonica rice(IJR) under mechanical transplanting method. In 2013 and 2014, field experiments were conducted using IHR(Yongyou 2640) and IJR(Wuyunjing 24) under two cultivation patterns, that is, pot seedlings mechanically transplanted(PS) and carpet seedlings mechanically transplanted(CS). Grain yield, yield components, leaf area index(LAI), leaf area duration(LAD), aboveground biomass, crop growth rate(CGR), nitrogen(N) uptake, and N accumulation were investigated. When compared with CS, PS displayed significantly increased grain yield for both varieties because the larger sink size allowed higher N accumulation from panicle initiation to maturity. Moreover, total aboveground biomass under PS increased significantly compared with that under CS; that is, higher photosynthetic productivity resulted from a greater LAI and higher LAD during the grain filling stage. Higher N absorption capacity in the middle and late growth periods resulted in significantly enhanced total N uptake under PS. When compared with IJR for both treatments, IHR generated 75.2% more grain yield. However, the characteristics creating high yield of IHR were different from those of IJR. Greater aboveground biomass production as well as higher N uptake and accumulation created higher grain yield in IHR than in IJR. These results suggest higher yield could be achieved using PS with IHR, attributing to exploit both yield superiority and productive potential.

Solar radiation-use characteristics of indica/japonica hybrid rice (Oryza sativa L.) in the late season in southeast China

New indica and japonica hybrid rice cultivars,such as the Yongyou series,provide farmers with very high yield potential.However,information on their canopy light capture and solar radiation use efficiency in the late season is limited.Field experiments were performed to compare the radiation-use parameters of four rice types:indica rice(IR),inbred japonica rice(IJR),hybrid japonica rice(HJR),and hybrid indica/japonica rice(HIJR),from 2016 to 2018 during the late season in Hangzhou,China.The grain yield,aboveground biomass,intercepted solar radiation(SI),and radiation-use efficiency(RUE)of the HIJR were on average respectively 13.4%–53.4%,14.3%–30.6%,7.6%–21.4%,and 8.2%–14.9%higher than those of the HJR,IJR,and IR.The leaf area index(LAI)of the HIJR was 18.2%–57.0%greater than that of the IJR and HJR at four growth stages,resulting in respectively 17.8%–38.5%and 10.7%–42.8%greater canopy light interception rates(LIR)and amount of intercepted solar radiation during the vegetative stage.The prolonged grain-filling stage also led to respectively 33.9%–52.6%and 30.5%–51.4%increases in amounts of incident and intercepted radiation for the HIJR relative to the IR during grain filling.These results indicate that the SI superiority of the HIJR was caused by canopy closure as rapid as that of the IR during the vegetative stage(greater LAI and canopy LIR during the growing season)and a grain-filling stage as long as that of the HJR.For grain-filling stage,differences in leaf Pn between HIJR,IR,and IJR were not significant,suggesting that the greater RUE of the HIJR(12.7%–52.8%higher)than that of the other rice types resulted from improved canopy architecture after flowering(FL).Principal components analysis(PCA)revealed that the superiority of the HIJR in terms of solar radiation use resulted from the greater canopy light capture capability of IR and the prolonged growth period(especially during grain filling)of japonica rice in the late growing season.

Yield characteristics of japonicalindica hybrids rice in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River in China

Although a lot of researches have been done on yield characteristics of japonica/indica hybrid rice,there is itte information on differences of yield characteristics between different types of hybrid.To determine common characteristics of japonical indica hybrid rice(JIHR)and identify the differences between different types of JIHR,the present study assessed yield characteristics,such as panicle trait,leaf area index(LAI),above-ground biomass accumulation,and nitrogen absorption and uilization,among three types of cultivar of JIHR.In our field experiments,three types of JIHR,e.g.,Yongyou,Chunyou and Jiayouzhongke,were divided,and each of them has two cultivars,which were used as materials,meanwhile,using conventional japonica rice(CJR)Wuyingjing 31 and Sujing 9 were as controls.The results showed that the mean yield of those JIHR was above 12 t ha^-1 in 2017 and 2018,and was 31.9 and 32.2%,respectively higher than that of CJR in the two years.Spikelet number per panicle of JIHR resulted in high yield.Higher yield of JIHR was likely contributed to greater panicle number and more spikelets per panicle.Higher yielding JIHR showed stronger tllering capacity,larger LAI and above-ground biomass accumulation from jointing to heading stages,which likely contributed to the higher number of spikelets per panicle.The long duration from heading to maturity stages allowed more nitrogen accumulation of higher yielding JIHR.

Relationship of Parental Indica-Japonica Indexes with Yield and Grain Quality Traits of Japonica Hybrid Rice in Northern China

Taking the main parents （10 male sterile lines and 10 restorer lines） and their 100 combinations of japonica hybrid rice in northern China as materials, the relationships of parental indica-japonica indexes determined by the methods of the Cheng’s index as well as simple sequence repeat （SSR） markers with yield and grain quality traits of hybrid rice were studied. For the parents, the Cheng’s index （Chi） ranged from 13.5 to 19.3 and the indica index in SSR markers （ADi） were from 0.12 to 0.38. The classification of parents by Chi was not completely consistent with that by ADi. The Chi of male parent was more closely related to hybrid traits than that of female parent, as contrasted to ADi. At the same time, the difference between parents （PD） in Chi was more closely related to hybrid traits than that in ADi. The indica-japonica indexes of parents and their difference between parents appeared quadratic relationship to hybrid traits with the critical extremum. The directions of the correlation of indica-japonica indexes of parents and their differences with hybrid yield traits were on the opposition to those with hybrid grain quality traits. Therefore, the female parent should match the male parent moderately in indica-japonica index to obtain the optimum of hybrid traits, high yield as well as good quality.

Relationship Between Plant Type and Grain Quality of Japonica Hybrid Rice in Northern China

Plant type and grain quality are two major aspects in rice breeding. Using canonical correlation analysis and canonical redundancy analysis, the relationship between plant type traits and rice grain quality traits was studied with 100 crosses derived from 10 sterile lines × 10 restorer lines. There was a complex relationship between parts of the traits of the two aspects. The angle of the 2nd leaf from the top and single panicle weight played important roles in plant type system and amylose content and grain length in grain quality system. The angle of the 2nd leaf from the top, plant height and single panicle weight had a great effect on grain quality traits, and amylose content, brown rice rate and translucency were easily influenced by plant type traits. Selection index model indicated that japonica hybrid rice in Northern China with good quality was characterized by broad flag leaf and 2nd leaf from the top, narrow and short 3rd leaf from the top, low plant height, short culm, long and more panicles and low single panicle weight.

Analysis of parental genetic diversity and its impact on grain yield and quality of japonica hybrid rice in northern China

The relationship between parental genetic differences and the quality and yield of japonica hybrid rice strongly influences japonica hybrid rice breeding.In this study,137 parental lines of japonica hybrid rice were genotyped using 8 K rice SNP-Chips to characterize their genetic diversity,population structure,and indica-genotype proportion.The genetic diversity of total parental lines averaged 0.264,with values of0.287 for restorer lines and 0.148 for the sterile lines.The introduction of indica lineage increased the genetic diversity of restorer lines relative to that of sterile lines.By model-based population structure analysis,the 137 lines were divided into 14 groups.According to the grouping results,eight restorer lines and five sterile lines were selected from different groups for cross breeding,yielding 40 japonica hybrid rice combinations(F1).Investigation of the yield and quality of these combinations showed that highyield combinations could be obtained by increasing parental genetic distance to 0.8–0.9,a result accomplished largely by the introduction of indica genomic components of restorer lines.To further improve grain quality,the genetic distance between parents should be reduced to 0.4–0.5,suggesting an indicagenotype proportion of 30%–40%for restorer lines.This study may provide a reference for breeding of japonica hybrid rice.

A Preliminary Study on the Relationship Between the Indica-Japonica RAPD Differentiation of Parents and Heterosisin Dian Type Hybrid Rice

The relationship between the indica-japonica differentiation of parents and heterosis of hybrid in rice was studied with 10 sterile lines, 10 maintainer lines of the sterile lines, 38 restorer lines of Dian type hybrid rice and 40 hybrids derived from the sterile lines and restorer lines. The results indicated that there was a parabolic correlation between the indica-japonica differentiation of parents detected by RAPD markers and heterosis of hybrid rice. When certain indica-japonica differentiation of parents exists, the percentage of combinations with positve heterosis and the mean heterosis of hybrids were high. But that didn't mean too much difference of parents could lead to stronger hetesosis, that meant overdiffernt parents seldom bring positve het-erotic hybrids. Suitable difference of percent of indica alleles of parents of stronger heterotic hybrid was 12 -16%.