Topp Christopher N, Bray Adam L, Ellis Nathanael A, Liu Zhengbin
Donald Danforth Plant Science Center, Saint Louis, Missouri 63132, USA.
J Integr Plant Biol. 2016 Mar;58(3):213-25. doi: 10.1111/jipb.12470. Epub 2016 Mar 11.
Root systems are a black box obscuring a comprehensive understanding of plant function, from the ecosystem scale down to the individual. In particular, a lack of knowledge about the genetic mechanisms and environmental effects that condition root system growth hinders our ability to develop the next generation of crop plants for improved agricultural productivity and sustainability. We discuss how the methods and metrics we use to quantify root systems can affect our ability to understand them, how we can bridge knowledge gaps and accelerate the derivation of structure-function relationships for roots, and why a detailed mechanistic understanding of root growth and function will be important for future agricultural gains.
根系就像一个黑匣子，阻碍了我们从生态系统尺度到个体层面全面理解植物功能。特别是，缺乏关于影响根系生长的遗传机制和环境效应的知识，阻碍了我们培育下一代作物以提高农业生产力和可持续性的能力。我们讨论了用于量化根系的方法和指标如何影响我们理解根系的能力，如何弥合知识差距并加速根系结构 - 功能关系的推导，以及为什么对根系生长和功能进行详细的机制理解对未来农业增产至关重要。
