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.

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.

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.

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 practical 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 2013 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 maturity 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.

Breeding of New Japonica-indica Hybrid Rice Combination Chunyou 59

Chunyou 59 is a japonica-indica hybrid rice combination developed from Chunjiang 16A(a late japonica CMS line with dwarfness and early anthesis time)and CH59(an indicaclinous wide compatibility restorer line).It has the characteristics of strong heterosis,strong stem,good lodging resistance,large panicles,good cold tolerance,high yield and wide adaptability.It was registered and released by Jiangxi Provincial Crop Variety Appraisal Committee in March 2009.The breeding procedure,characteristics,major techniques of cultivation and seed production of Chunyou 59 were introduced in the paper.

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.

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.

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.

Effects of chilling tolerance induced by spermidine pretreatment on antioxidative activity,endogenous hormones and ultrastructure of indica-japonica hybrid rice seedlings

Spermidine(Spd) is known to be involved in the regulation of plant responses to chilling stress and counteract the adverse effect of stress conditions.Antioxidant activities,endogenous hormones and ultrastructure change under chilling stress were investigated in indica-japonica hybrid rice seedlings.12-d-old seedlings were subjected to exogenous Spd(1 mmol L^(-1)) and then a chilling stress(6℃,4 d) was induced,followed by a subsequent recovery(25℃,4 d).Results showed that malondialdehyde(MDA) and proline content were enhanced significantly,whereas shoot fresh and dry weights decreased during chilling stress and after recovery;chlorophyll content of chilling-stressed seedlings increased slightly but declined after recovery;additionally,total soluble sugar,sucrose,fructose and starch contents increased significantly during chilling stress,and only soluble sugar and fructose contents were observed in increase after recovery;chilling stress-induced increases in superoxide dismutase(SOD),peroxidase(POD) and catalase(CAT) activities,but declined after recovery,and the level of ascorbate peroxidase was lower during chilling stress and after recovery;however,endogenous indole-3-acetic acid(IAA),zeatin riboside(ZR),gibberellic acid(GA_3),and abscisic acid(ABA) levels were induced decreased compared with Spd pretreatment.The microscopic analysis revealed that chilling stress-induced destruction of the chloroplast envelope during chilling stress and increased the number of plastoglobuli along with aberrations in thylakoid membranes after recovery.In contrast,exogenous Spd protected rice seedlings from chilling-induced injuries in terms of lower malondialdehyde,proline and carbohydrates accumulation coupled with increased endogenous hormones metabolism.After recovery,Spd pretreatment chilling-exposed seedlings showed higher activities of antioxidant enzymes and normal physiological function of chloroplasts.These results suggest that Spd could promote effectively chilling tolerance which might be largely attributable to the integrity of cell structure and normal metabolism of endogenous hormones in indica-japonica hybrid rice seedlings.

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 hybridin rice was studied with 10 sterile lines, 10 maintainer lines of the sterile lines, 38 restorer lines of Dian typehybrid rice and 40 hybrids derived from the sterile lines and restorer lines. The results indicated that there wasa parabolic correlation between the indica-japonica differentiation of parents detected by RAPD markers andheterosis of hybrid rice. When certain indica-japonica differentiation of parents exists, the percentage of com-binations with positve heterosis and the mean heterosis of hybrids were high. But that didn't mean too muchdifference 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%.

Different Aluminum Tolerance among Indica, Japonica and Hybrid Rice Varieties

Hydroponic cultures were conducted to compare the aluminum(Al) tolerance among different rice(Oryza sativa L.) varieties, including indica, japonica and their hybrids. The results showed that the root growth of rice plant was inhibited in different degrees among Al treated varieties. The Al tolerance observed through relative root elongation indicated that five japonica varieties including Longjing 9, Dharial, LGC 1, Ribenyou and Koshihikari were relatively more tolerant than indica varieties. Most indica varieties in this study, such as Aus 373 and 9311(awnless), were sensitive to Al toxicity. The Al tolerance of most progenies from japonica × indica or indica × japonica crosses was constantly consistent with indica parents. The differences of Al tolerance among Longjing 9(japonica), Yangdao 6(indica) and Wuyunjing 7(japonica) were studied. Biomass and the malondial-dehyde content of Yangdao 6 under Al exposure decreased and increased, respectively, while there was no significant effect on those of Longjing 9 and Wuyunjing 7. Remarkable reduction of root activities was observed in all these three rice varieties. Significantly higher Al content in roots was found in Yangdao 6 compared to Longjing 9 or Wuyunjing 7.

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.

Review and Prospect on Japonica Hybrid Rice Research in Anhui Province, China

The breeding history and commercial exploitation of japonica hybrid rice in Anhui Province, China over the last threedecades were reviewed. Besides, the bottleneck problems restricting the development of japonica hybrid rice in China weresummarized, and corresponding technological countermeasures were proposed.

Resistance Evaluation of Some Hybrid Rice, Conventional Early Indica and Late Japonica Rice to Magnaporthe grisea

Thirty isolates of Magnaporthe grisea collected from 18 provinces/cities representing 21 pathotypes and 9 different lineages were inoculated to rice varieties with known resistance genes and some hybrid rices, conventional early indica and late japonica varieties cultivated recently in China. Virulence spectrum of the 30 isolates was very different, showing that they recognize numerous different resistance genes. Varieties also revealed very different resistance patterns showing that they carry different resistance genes or combinations of resistance genes. On the basis of comparisons with international differential varieties with known resistance genes, resistance genes in certain Chinese varieties could be speculated. The results indicated that some of them were resistant to most of the isolates tested and that they could be of interest as resistance sources for hybrid parents or to be planted in the field directly.

Genetic Analysis on Plant Type of Northern Japonica Hybrid Rice

This study was designed to analyze the genetic relationship of the morphological traits of the northern japonica hybrid rice. The genetic relationship of the morphological traits of the 100 cultivars combined by the 10 sterile lines and the 10 restore lines was studied by using the principle component analysis and the SAS and QGA. The results showed that compared with the female parent,most of the morphological traits related closely to their father. The additive genetic effect and the dominant genetic effect appeared significantly,and the former was more significant than the latter. Genetic correlation analysis indicated that high plants or high plants with more leaves were in favor of improving the number and the weight of the spike and producing the hybrid vigor. The important factors influencing the plant type of the northern japonica hybrid rice were the plant height (PH),the angle of the flag leaf (FLA),flag leaf length (FLL),and the weight of the shoots and leaves (SLW),respectively. The morphological traits system of the northern japonica hybrid rice was very complex,and the restore line should be given more importance compared with the sterile line,and PH,FLA,FLL,and SLW should be considered first in the plant type breeding.

Distribution of Eight Blast-resistant Genes in Parents of Three-line Japonica Hybrid Rice

The distribution of rice blast-resistant genes Pi2, Pi5, Pi9, Pi54, Pia, Pib, Pit and Pita in 36 restoring lines and 42 sterile lines were detected using functional molecular markers. The results indicated that those eight blast-resistant genes distributed in the 78 tested lines at various frequencies. Six rice blast-resistant genes were detected in the sterile line Shen 11 A, containing the most rice blast-resistant genes among the 78 lines, whereas no rice blast-resistant gene was detected in the lines 8527 A, Xu1 A and 016 A. The genetic distance-based clustering analysis showed that those 78 lines could be divided into five groups.

Breeding of New Japonica-indica Hybrid Rice Combination Chunyou 284

Chunyou 284 is a medium- japonica hybrid combination,as well as an indica-japonica subspecific hyrbid with super-high yield,which was developed from Chunjiang 23A,a thermo-sensitive CMS line with very early anthesis time,and C84,an indica-japonica intermediate type restorer line with wide compatibility.This combination has the advantages of high yield potential,early maturity,excellent comprehensive agronomic traits and wide adaptability.It was approved by Jiangsu Provincial Crop Variety Approval Committee in June,2018.The breeding process,main characteristics,cultivation techniques and seed production points of the combination were introduced.

Developmental Analysis of Genetic Behavior of Brown Rice Width in indica-japonica Hybrids

The developmental genetic behaviors of brown rice width (BRW) have been studied in indica-japonica hybrid rice (Oryza sativa L.), in which seven indica male sterile lines and five japonica restorer lines were applied, by using the developmental genetic models and corresponding statistical approaches for quantitative traits of triploid in cereal crops. The BRW of indica-japonica hybrid rice was co-determined by gene expression of triploid endosperm, cytoplasm, diploid maternal plant and their genotype × environmental interaction effects. Unconditional analysis showed that the endosperm additive and maternal additive effects were predominant for the development of BRW from early- to late-stage of the grain development, but the endosperm dominant effect together with maternal effect and cytoplasmic effect became the major factor determing the BRW at the ripening stage. Moreover, conditional analysis found that there were new onset and offset of gene expression at different developmental stages of BRW in indica-japonica hybrid rice. Maternal and cytoplasm general heritabilities and their interaction heritabilities were more important compared to other components of heritability for BRW at all the five developmental stages.

Genetic Analysis of Leucine Content in Indica-Japonica Hybrid Rice (Oryza sativa L.)

Genetic control of leucine content in indica-japonica hybrid rice (Oryza sativa L.) was studied in 35 crosses of F1 and F2 generations, which were derived from crossing 7 male sterile indica rice lines with 5 restorer japonica rice lines along with their parents. Two genetic models and their corresponding statistical methods for quantitative traits of triploid seeds in cereal crops were used for the analysis. The first was the unconditional genetic model, which refers to the analysis of cumulative measurements (from flowering to a specific time) along the developmental stages, while the second was the conditional genetic model, which relates to analysis from one developmental stage to another stage (t - 1→t). The results showed that leucine content of indica-japonica hybrid rice was controlled by the expression of triploid endosperm effect (endosperm additive effect and endosperm dominant effect), cytoplasm effect, diploid maternal plant effect (maternal additive effect and maternal dominant effect) and their environmental interaction effects. Of these effects, endosperm dominant effect and maternal dominant effect were more important at the earlier stages, while endosperm additive effect and maternal additive effect were more important at the later stages of rice grain development under both unconditional and conditional genetic analyses. Due to the high heritabilities, which came from endosperm, maternal and cytoplasm effects for leucine content at different developmental stages, selection for leucine content of indica-japonica hybrid rice would be more efficient at early generations in breeding programs.