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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Plant Sci.
Sec. Functional and Applied Plant Genomics
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpls.2024.1501533
This article is part of the Research Topic Improving Yield and Quality of Cereal Crops: Exploring and Utilizing Genes for Green and Efficient Traits View all 8 articles

Genome-Wide Association Study Identifies Key F-Box Genes Linked to Ethylene Responsiveness and Root Growth in Rice (Oryza sativa L.)

Provisionally accepted
Suparad Klinsawang Suparad Klinsawang 1Wanchana Aesomnuk Wanchana Aesomnuk 1Piyamongkol Mangkalasan Piyamongkol Mangkalasan 1Vinitchan Ruanjaichon Vinitchan Ruanjaichon 2Jonaliza L Siangliw Jonaliza L Siangliw 2Bipin Kumar Pandey Bipin Kumar Pandey 3Malcolm Bennett Malcolm Bennett 3Samart Wanchana Samart Wanchana 2*Siwaret Arikit Siwaret Arikit 1*
  • 1 Kasetsart University, Bangkok, Thailand
  • 2 National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA), Pathum Thani, Thailand
  • 3 University of Nottingham, Nottingham, England, United Kingdom

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is a staple food for more than half of the world's population, but its yields are increasingly threatened by environmental problems, including soil compaction. This problem limits root growth which limits water and nutrient foraging capacity thus reduces productivity due to, restricted diffusion of ethylene, a key plant hormone playing an important role in exacerbating these effects. Elevated ethylene levels in compacted soils can further inhibit root development. However, rice varieties that are less sensitive to ethylene may have an advantage as they exhibit better root growth and resource utilization under such conditions. In this study, 220 diverse rice accessions were analyzed to uncover the genetic factors that influence root length reduction (RLR) in response to ethylene. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) identified a significant QTL on chromosome 10, named qRLR10, associated with ethylene response. Within this region, 20 candidate genes were identified, with three Fbox genes namely Os10g0124700, Os10g0126600 and Os10g0128200 showing a strong correlation with RLR variations. These genes are involved in protein degradation, root development and hormone signaling, indicating their possible role in regulating ethylene sensitivity. The results suggest that rice varieties with lower ethylene sensitivity may have better root growth in compacted soils, making them ideal targets for breeding programs aimed at improving resilience to harsh environmental conditions. These results underscore the critical role of ethylene in rice root development and provide valuable insights for future rice improvement strategies aimed at mitigating the effects of soil compaction.

    Keywords: rice1, root2, ethylene sensitivity3, GWAS4, F-box

    Received: 25 Sep 2024; Accepted: 27 Nov 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Klinsawang, Aesomnuk, Mangkalasan, Ruanjaichon, Siangliw, Pandey, Bennett, Wanchana and Arikit. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Samart Wanchana, National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA), Pathum Thani, 12120, Thailand
    Siwaret Arikit, Kasetsart University, Bangkok, Thailand

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