Towards a rice plant with improved photosynthetic efficiency and enhanced robustness

2023 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 21K14758
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: Basic Section 38010:Plant nutrition and soil science-related
• Research Institution: Fukushima University
• Principal Investigator: SUGANAMI MAO 福島大学, 食農学類附属発酵醸造研究所, 特任助教 (30897492)
• Project Period (FY): 2021-04-01 – 2024-03-31
• Keywords: イネ / 光合成 / Rubisco / Rubisco activase

Outline of Final Research Achievements

In this study, in order to produce rice plants with both improved photosynthetic efficiency and photosynthetic robustness, the following three proteins were simultaneously enhanced: Rubisco, the rate-limiting factor of photosynthesis responsible for CO2 assimilation; Rubisco activase (RCA), the activator of Rubisco; and Flavone protein FLV, which is responsible for removing excess electron accumulation and acts as a safety valve for photosynthesis, were simultaneously enhanced. As a result, we succeeded in producing lines with even higher CO2 fixation rates under the present atmospheric conditions of high temperatures than the single enhanced rice plants and the simultaneously enhanced Rubisco-RCA rice plants, respectively.

Free Research Field

植物栄養学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

本研究では、これまでに我々が作出した光合成改良イネであるRubisco-RCA同時増強イネが持っていた光化学系Iの脆弱性を克服し、更なる光合成改良に成功した。このことは、学術的な価値にとどまらず、食糧増産という実用面からみても極めて重要な成果である。今後は、作製したRubisco-RCA-FLVイネがどのような環境条件下でその効果を最大化させるか、またはその効果が発揮されない条件を精査していき、更なる光合成改良のターゲットを探索する材料として活用していく予定である。