Centre for Soybean Research of the State Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology and School of Life Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China.
Shenzhen Research Institute, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, 518057, China.
BMC Plant Biol. 2024 Aug 6;24(1):749. doi: 10.1186/s12870-024-05477-8.
Climate change induces perturbation in the global water cycle, profoundly impacting water availability for agriculture and therefore global food security. Water stress encompasses both drought (i.e. water scarcity) that causes the drying of soil and subsequent plant desiccation, and flooding, which results in excess soil water and hypoxia for plant roots. Terrestrial plants have evolved diverse mechanisms to cope with soil water stress, with the root system serving as the first line of defense. The responses of roots to water stress can involve both structural and physiological changes, and their plasticity is a vital feature of these adaptations. Genetic methodologies have been extensively employed to identify numerous genetic loci linked to water stress-responsive root traits. This knowledge is immensely important for developing crops with optimal root systems that enhance yield and guarantee food security under water stress conditions.
This review focused on the latest insights into modifications in the root system architecture and anatomical features of legume roots in response to drought and flooding stresses. Special attention was given to recent breakthroughs in understanding the genetic underpinnings of legume root development under water stress. The review also described various root phenotyping techniques and examples of their applications in different legume species. Finally, the prevailing challenges and prospective research avenues in this dynamic field as well as the potential for using root system architecture as a breeding target are discussed.
This review integrated the latest knowledge of the genetic components governing the adaptability of legume roots to water stress, providing a reference for using root traits as the new crop breeding targets.
气候变化导致全球水循环紊乱，深刻影响农业用水，进而影响全球粮食安全。水胁迫包括导致土壤干燥和随后植物枯萎的干旱（即水资源短缺），以及导致土壤含水量过多和植物根系缺氧的洪水。陆生植物已经进化出多种机制来应对土壤水分胁迫，其中根系是第一道防线。根系对水分胁迫的响应既包括结构变化，也包括生理变化，其可塑性是这些适应的重要特征。遗传方法已被广泛用于鉴定与水分胁迫响应性根特性相关的众多遗传位点。这些知识对于开发具有最佳根系的作物至关重要，有助于提高产量并保障在水分胁迫条件下的粮食安全。
本综述重点介绍了豆科植物根系在应对干旱和洪水胁迫时，其根系结构和解剖特征的最新变化。特别关注了在理解水分胁迫下豆科植物根系发育的遗传基础方面的最新突破。本综述还描述了各种根系表型技术及其在不同豆科植物中的应用实例。最后，讨论了该动态领域当前面临的挑战和未来的研究方向，以及利用根系结构作为育种目标的潜力。
本综述整合了控制豆科植物根系适应水分胁迫的遗传成分的最新知识，为利用根特性作为新的作物育种目标提供了参考。
