Relationship Between Lodging Resistance and Chemical Contents in Culms and Sheaths of Japonica Rice During Grain Filling

To understand the relationship between lodging resistance and chemical component contents in culms and leaf sheaths of rice, the physical strength and maximum bearing capacity of culm, and the contents and amounts of potassium （K） silicon （Si） and soluble sugars in culms and leaf sheaths were investigated using four japonica rice varieties with different lodging resistance characteristics during grain filling. There were significant differences in the total amounts of K, Si and soluble sugars in culms and leaf sheaths among the tested rice varieties. The difference in the total amount of Si was greater than that of K or soluble sugars. The physical strength and maximum bearing capacity of culm continuously decreased from heading to ripening, with a rapid decrease at the dough stage. However, the contents and total amounts of K and Si in culms and the Si content in leaf sheaths gradually increased and an accumulation of K and Si in culms was exhibited, whereas the content and total amount of K and the total amount of Si in leaf sheaths gradually decreased and an exportation of K and Si in leaf sheaths was presented. The physical strength was positively and significantly correlated with the total amounts of K and Si in culms during grain filling except that at the heading stage, the total amount of soluble sugars in culms at the heading and milky stages, the total amounts of Si and soluble sugars in leaf sheaths at the heading stage, the total amount of K in leaf sheaths at the heading and milky stages, and the maximum bearing capacity during grain filling. It is suggested that the lodging resistance of japonica rice would be improved by increasing the amount of soluble sugars in plants at the early filling stage, and enhancing the amount of Si in plants during grain filling through topdressing Si fertilizer at the early filling stage.

Changes in Activities of Key Enzymes for Starch Synthesis and Glutamine Synthetase in Grains of Progenies from a Rice Cross During Grain Filling

The progenies differed in amylose and protein contents in grains, which derived from a rice cross, Dongnong 423×Toukei 180, were used to study changes in the activities of ADP-glucose pyrophosphorylase （AGPP）, soluble starch synthetase （SSS）, starch branching enzyme （SBE） and glutamine synthetase （GS） in rice grains during grain filling. The activities of AGPP, SSS and SBE gradually increased and then declined as a single-peak curve with the process of grain filling in the progenies with high and low amylose contents in grains. The progenies with high amylose content peaked earlier in the AGPP, SSS and SBE activities and had higher AGPP, SSS and SBE activities at the early grain filling stage than those with low amylose content. The GS activity peaked earlier and was higher at the late stage of grain filling in the progenies with high protein content than in those with low protein content. It is suggested that the activities of key enzymes for starch synthesis and glutamine synthetase could be changed in oriented breeding for amylose and protein contents in grains.