TY - JOUR
T1 - Root phenes that reduce the metabolic costs of soil exploration
T2 - Opportunities for 21st century agriculture
AU - Lynch, Jonathan P.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
PY - 2015/9/1
Y1 - 2015/9/1
N2 - Crop genotypes with reduced metabolic costs of soil exploration would have improved water and nutrient acquisition. Three strategies to achieve this goal are (1) production of the optimum number of axial roots; (2) greater biomass allocation to root classes that are less metabolically demanding; and (3) reduction of the respiratory requirement of root tissue. An example of strategy 1 is the case of reduced crown root number in maize, which is associated with greater rooting depth, N capture and yield in low N soil. An example of strategy 2 is the case of increased hypocotyl-borne rooting in bean, which decreases root cost and increases P capture from low P soil. Examples of strategy 3 are the cases of increased formation of root cortical aerenchyma, decreased cortical cell file number and increased cortical cell size in maize, which decrease specific root respiration, increase rooting depth and increase water capture and yield under water stress. Root cortical aerenchyma also increases N capture and yield under N stress. Root phenes that reduce the metabolic cost of soil exploration are promising, underexploited avenues to the climate-resilient, resource-efficient crops that are urgently needed in global agriculture. This article proposes that crop genotypes with reduced metabolic costs of soil exploration would have improved water and nutrient acquisition. Three strategies to achieve this goal are 1) production of the optimum number of axial roots; 2) greater biomass allocation to root classes that are less metabolically demanding; and 3) reduction of the respiratory requirement of root tissue. Root phenes that reduce the metabolic cost of soil exploration are promising, underexploited avenues to the climate-resilient, resource-efficient crops that are urgently needed in global agriculture.
AB - Crop genotypes with reduced metabolic costs of soil exploration would have improved water and nutrient acquisition. Three strategies to achieve this goal are (1) production of the optimum number of axial roots; (2) greater biomass allocation to root classes that are less metabolically demanding; and (3) reduction of the respiratory requirement of root tissue. An example of strategy 1 is the case of reduced crown root number in maize, which is associated with greater rooting depth, N capture and yield in low N soil. An example of strategy 2 is the case of increased hypocotyl-borne rooting in bean, which decreases root cost and increases P capture from low P soil. Examples of strategy 3 are the cases of increased formation of root cortical aerenchyma, decreased cortical cell file number and increased cortical cell size in maize, which decrease specific root respiration, increase rooting depth and increase water capture and yield under water stress. Root cortical aerenchyma also increases N capture and yield under N stress. Root phenes that reduce the metabolic cost of soil exploration are promising, underexploited avenues to the climate-resilient, resource-efficient crops that are urgently needed in global agriculture. This article proposes that crop genotypes with reduced metabolic costs of soil exploration would have improved water and nutrient acquisition. Three strategies to achieve this goal are 1) production of the optimum number of axial roots; 2) greater biomass allocation to root classes that are less metabolically demanding; and 3) reduction of the respiratory requirement of root tissue. Root phenes that reduce the metabolic cost of soil exploration are promising, underexploited avenues to the climate-resilient, resource-efficient crops that are urgently needed in global agriculture.
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U2 - 10.1111/pce.12451
DO - 10.1111/pce.12451
M3 - Review article
C2 - 25255708
AN - SCOPUS:84938629563
VL - 38
SP - 1775
EP - 1784
JO - Plant, Cell and Environment
JF - Plant, Cell and Environment
SN - 0140-7791
IS - 9
ER -