Institute of Field and Vegetable Crops, National Institute of the Republic of Serbia, Maksima Gorkog 30, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia.
Int J Mol Sci. 2020 Feb 20;21(4):1424. doi: 10.3390/ijms21041424.
Boron is an essential plant micronutrient taken up via the roots mostly in the form of boric acid. Its important role in plant metabolism involves the stabilization of molecules with -diol groups. The element is involved in the cell wall and membrane structure and functioning; therefore, it participates in numerous ion, metabolite, and hormone transport reactions. Boron has an extremely narrow range between deficiency and toxicity, and inadequate boron supply exhibits a detrimental effect on the yield of agricultural plants. The deficiency problem can be solved by fertilization, whereas soil boron toxicity can be ameliorated using various procedures; however, these approaches are costly and time-consuming, and they often show temporary effects. Plant species, as well as the genotypes within the species, dramatically differ in terms of boron requirements; thus, the available soil boron which is deficient for one crop may exhibit toxic effects on another. The widely documented intraspecies genetic variability regarding boron utilization efficiency and toxicity tolerance, together with the knowledge of the physiology and genetics of boron, should result in the development of efficient and tolerant varieties that may represent a long-term sustainable solution for the problem of inadequate or excess boron supply.
硼是一种植物必需的微量元素，主要通过根部以硼酸的形式被植物吸收。它在植物代谢中的重要作用涉及到具有 -二醇基团的分子的稳定性。硼元素参与细胞壁和膜的结构和功能；因此，它参与了许多离子、代谢物和激素的运输反应。硼在缺乏和毒性之间的范围非常狭窄，硼供应不足会对农业植物的产量产生不利影响。通过施肥可以解决硼缺乏的问题，而使用各种方法可以减轻土壤硼毒性；然而，这些方法既昂贵又耗时，而且往往只表现出暂时的效果。植物物种以及物种内的基因型在硼需求方面存在显著差异；因此，对一种作物来说可用的土壤硼可能对另一种作物表现出毒性作用。关于硼利用效率和毒性耐受性的广泛记录的种内遗传变异性，以及对硼生理学和遗传学的了解，应该会导致开发出高效和耐受的品种，这可能是解决硼供应不足或过量问题的长期可持续解决方案。
