FT/FD-GRF5 repression loop directs growth to increase soybean yield

AbstractMajor advances in crop yield are eternally needed to cope with population growth. To balance vegetative and reproductive growth plays an important role in agricultural yield. To extend vegetative phase can increase crop yield, however, this strategy risks loss of yield in the field as crops may not mature in time before winter come. Here, we identified a repression feedback loop between GmFTL/GmFDL and GmGRF5-1 (Glycine-max-Flowering-Locus-T/Glycine-max-FDL and Glycine-max-GROWTH-REGULATING-FACTOR5-1), which functions as a pivotal regulator in balancing vegetative and reproductive phases in soybean. GmFTL/GmFDL and GmGRF5-1 directly repress gene expression each other. Additionally, GmGRF5-1 enhances vegetative growth by directly enhancing expression of photosynthesis- and auxin synthesis-related genes. To modulate the loop, such as fine-tuning GmFTL expression to trade-off vegetative and reproductive growth, increases substantially soybean yield in the field. Our findings not only uncover the mechanism balancing vegetative and reproductive growth, but open a new window to improve crop yield.

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Fine-Tuning Florigen Increases Field Yield Through Improving Photosynthesis in Soybean

Frontiers in Plant Science ◽

10.3389/fpls.2021.710754 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 ◽

Author(s):

Kun Xu ◽

Xiao-Mei Zhang ◽

Haifeng Chen ◽

Chanjuan Zhang ◽

Jinlong Zhu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Flowering Time ◽

Crop Yield ◽

Plant Biomass ◽

Fine Tuning ◽

High Yield ◽

Soybean Yield ◽

Flowering Genes ◽

Transgenic Lines ◽

Notable Increase ◽

Crop Maturity

Crop yield has been maintaining its attraction for researchers because of the demand of global population growth. Mutation of flowering activators, such as florigen, increases plant biomass at the expense of later flowering, which prevents crop maturity in the field. As a result, it is difficult to apply flowering activators in agriculture production. Here, we developed a strategy to utilize florigen to significantly improve soybean yield in the field. Through the screening of transgenic lines of RNAi-silenced florigen homologs in soybean (Glycine-max-Flowering Locus T Like, GmFTL), we identified a line, GmFTL-RNAi#1, with minor changes in both GmFTL expression and flowering time but with notable increase in soybean yield. As expected, GmFTL-RNAi#1 matured normally in the field and exhibited markedly high yield over multiple locations and years, indicating that it is possible to reach a trade-off between flowering time and high yield through the fine-tuning expression of flowering activators. Further studies uncovered an unknown mechanism by which GmFTL negatively regulates photosynthesis, a substantial source of crop yield, demonstrating a novel function of florigen. Thus, because of the highly conserved functions of florigen in plants and the classical RNAi approach, the findings provide a promising strategy to harness early flowering genes to improve crop yield.

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Comparison of glyphosate formulations with and without sequential herbicides for no-till soybean in narrow rows

Phytoprotection ◽

10.7202/009835ar ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 85 (2) ◽

pp. 95-100 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Jerry A. Ivany

Keyword(s):

Glycine Max ◽

Weed Control ◽

Crop Yield ◽

Broad Spectrum ◽

Effective Control ◽

Yield Reduction ◽

Soybean Yield ◽

No Till ◽

Residual Herbicide ◽

Glyphosate Formulations

Effective control of weeds during early stages of soybean (Glycine max) growth is critical to minimize crop yield reduction. Experiments were conducted to compare weed control and crop yield with two glyphosate formulations (trimethylsulfonium and isopropylamine salts) applied in the fall or spring, either alone or in combination with sequential pre-or postememergence herbicides in soybean cv. ‘Maple Glen’ no-till planted in narrow rows into grain stubble. In six experiments where glyphosate was applied (three in the fall and three in the spring), there was no difference in weed control or in soybean yield between the two glyphosate formulations. Crop yield was improved over glyphosate used alone by addition of metribuzin in all fall experiments and in two of three spring experiments and by addition of linuron in two of three experiments in both fall and spring. An herbicide that controlled annual broadleaf weeds was needed after fall-applied glyphosate in all experiments to achieve maximum soybean yield. Addition of an effective sequential herbicide after spring applied glyphosate improved yields but not to the same extent as noted with the fall applied glyphosate. A pre-emergence residual herbicide, such as metribuzin or linuron, that controls a broad spectrum of weeds is recommended after fall or spring applied glyphosate to maximize soybean yield.

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Physiology of Methylotrophs Living in the Phyllosphere

Microorganisms ◽

10.3390/microorganisms9040809 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 9 (4) ◽

pp. 809

Author(s):

Hiroya Yurimoto ◽

Kosuke Shiraishi ◽

Yasuyoshi Sakai

Keyword(s):

Plant Growth ◽

Crop Yield ◽

Environmental Conditions ◽

Sole Source ◽

Current Understanding ◽

Methylotrophic Bacteria ◽

Cellular Mechanisms ◽

Diurnal Cycles ◽

Promote Plant Growth ◽

Increase Crop Yield

Methanol is abundant in the phyllosphere, the surface of the above-ground parts of plants, and its concentration oscillates diurnally. The phyllosphere is one of the major habitats for a group of microorganisms, the so-called methylotrophs, that utilize one-carbon (C1) compounds, such as methanol and methane, as their sole source of carbon and energy. Among phyllospheric microorganisms, methanol-utilizing methylotrophic bacteria, known as pink-pigmented facultative methylotrophs (PPFMs), are the dominant colonizers of the phyllosphere, and some of them have recently been shown to have the ability to promote plant growth and increase crop yield. In addition to PPFMs, methanol-utilizing yeasts can proliferate and survive in the phyllosphere by using unique molecular and cellular mechanisms to adapt to the stressful phyllosphere environment. This review describes our current understanding of the physiology of methylotrophic bacteria and yeasts living in the phyllosphere where they are exposed to diurnal cycles of environmental conditions.

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