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Hereditas(Beijing) ›› 2021, Vol. 43 ›› Issue (7): 629-641.doi: 10.16288/j.yczz.21-064

• Special Section: Excellent Doctoral Thesis • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Genetic improvement of nitrogen use efficiency in crops

Shan Li1(), Yunzhi Huang1(), Xueying Liu2, Xiangdong Fu2,3   

  1. 1. State Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics & Germplasm Enhancement, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing 210095, China;
    2. State Key Laboratory of Plant Cell and Chromosome Engineering, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Beijing 100101, China
    3. University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
  • Received:2021-02-18 Revised:2021-04-02 Online:2021-07-20 Published:2021-04-25
  • Contact: Fu Xiangdong E-mail:shanli@njau.edu.cn;2020201051@stu.njau.edu.cn
  • Supported by:
    Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China Nos(31830082);Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China Nos(91935301);the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province No(BK20200540)

Abstract:

Nitrogen (N) is an essential mineral nutrient for plant growth and development. N deficiency is the major factor limiting plant growth and crop production in most natural and agricultural soils. The green revolution of the 1960’s boosted crop yields through cultivation of semi-dwarf plant varieties. However, green revolution wheat and rice varieties have relatively poor nitrogen use efficiency (NUE), require a high N fertilizer supply to achieve maximum yield potential, and this leads to an increase in production costs and environmental problem. Therefore, a major challenge for sustainable agriculture is whether improvement of NUE through the reduction of N fertilizer supply can be achieved without yield penalty. In this review, we summarize the recent advances in understanding of molecular mechanisms underlying the regulation of N-responsive plant growth, utilization and possibility for improvements of NUE in crops, and new breeding strategies through modulation of N-responsive growth-metabolism coordination for future sustainable agriculture.

Key words: rice, green revolution, nitrogen use efficiency, sustainable agriculture