Rice paddies are a major source of methane emissions. To meet the food demand of the growing population and to cope with global warming, reducing greenhouse gases and enhancing yields are critical. Here we demonstrate that a loss-of-function rice allele, gs3, mitigates methane emissions from methanogens by allocating more photosynthates to the grain and less to the root and increases yield by enlarging grain size and weight.

Agriculture is the second most important greenhouse gas (GHG: methane (CH₄) and nitrous oxide (N₂O) emissions)-emitting sector after the energy sector. Agriculture is also recognized as the source and sink of GHGs. The share of agriculture to the global GHG emission records has been widely investigated, but the impact on our food production systems has been overlooked for decades until the recent climate crisis. Livestock production and feed, nitrogen-rich fertilizers and livestock manure application, crop residue burning, as well as water management in flood-prone cultivation areas are components of agriculture that produce and emit most GHGs. Although agriculture produces 72–89% less GHGs than other sectors, it is believed that reducing GHG emissions in agriculture would considerably lower its share of the global GHG emission records, which may lead to enormous benefits for the environment and food production systems. However, several diverging and controversial views questioning the actual role of plants in the current global GHG budget continue to nourish the debate globally. We must acknowledge that considering the beneficial roles of major GHGs to plants at a certain level of accumulation, implementing GHG mitigation measures from agriculture is indeed a complex task. This work provides a comprehensive review of agriculture-related GHG production and emission mechanisms, as well as GHG mitigation measures regarded as potential solutions available in the literature. This review also discusses in depth the significance and the dynamics of mitigation measures regarded as game changers with a high potential to enhance, in a sustainable manner, the resilience of agricultural systems. Some of the old but essential agricultural practices and livestock feed techniques are revived and discussed. Agricultural GHG mitigation approaches discussed in this work can serve as game changers in the attempt to reduce GHG emissions and alleviate the impact of climate change through sustainable agriculture and informed decision-making.

Background: Crop breeding should be accelerated to address global warming and climate change. Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is a major food crop. Speed breeding (SB) and speed vernalization (SV) techniques for spring and winter wheat have recently been established. However, there are few practical examples of these strategies being used economically and efficiently in breeding programs. We aimed to establish and evaluate the performance of a breeder-friendly and energy-saving generation acceleration system by modifying the SV + SB system. Results: In this study, a four-generation advancement system for wheat (regardless of its growth habits) was established and evaluated using an energy-efficient extended photoperiod treatment. A glasshouse with a 22-hour photoperiod that used 10 h of natural sunlight and 12 h of LED lights, and minimized temperature control during the winter season, was successful in accelerating generation. Even with one or two field tests, modified speed breeding (mSB) combined with a speed vernalization system (SV + mSB) reduced breeding time by more than half compared to traditional field-based methods. When compared to the existing SV + SB system, the SV + mSB system reduced energy use by 80% to maintain a 22-hour photoperiod. Significant correlations were found between the SV + mSB and field conditions in the number of days to heading (DTH) and culm length (CL). Genetic resources, recombinant inbred lines, and breeding materials that exhibited shorter DTH and CL values under SV + mSB conditions showed the same pattern in the field. Conclusions: The results of our SV + mSB model, as well as its practical application in wheat breeding programs, are expected to help breeders worldwide incorporate generation acceleration systems into their conventional breeding programs.

Bakanae or foot rot disease is a prominent disease of rice caused by Gibberella fujikuroi. This disease may infect rice plants from the pre-emergence stage to the mature stage. In recent years, raising rice seedlings in seed boxes for mechanical transplanting has increased the incidence of many seedling diseases; only a few rice varieties have been reported to exhibit resistance to bakanae disease. In this study, we attempted to identify quantitative trait loci (QTLs) conferring bakanae disease resistance from the highly resistant japonica variety Wonseadaesoo. A primary QTL study using the genotypes/phenotypes of the recombinant inbred lines (RILs) indicated that the locus qBK1 WD conferring resistance to bakanae disease from Wonseadaesoo was located in a 1.59 Mb interval delimited on the physical map between chr01_13542347 (13.54 Mb) and chr01_15132528 (15.13 Mb). The log of odds (LOD) score of qBK1 WD was 8.29, accounting for 20.2% of the total phenotypic variation. We further identified a gene pyramiding effect of two QTLs, qBK WD and previously developed qBK1. The mean proportion of healthy plant for 31 F4 RILs that had no resistance genes was 35.3%, which was similar to that of the susceptible check variety Ilpum. The proportion of healthy plants for the lines with only qBK WD or qBK1 was 66.1% and 55.5%, respectively, which was significantly higher than that of the lines without resistance genes and that of Ilpum. The mean proportion of the healthy plant for 15 F4 RILs harboring both qBK WD and qBK1 was 80.2%, which was significantly higher than that of the lines with only qBK WD or qBK1. Introducing qBK WD or pyramiding the QTLs qBK WD and qBK1 could provide effective tools for breeding rice with bakanae disease resistance. To our knowledge, this is the first report on a gene pyramiding effect that provides higher resistance against bakanae disease.

Bakanae disease is a fungal disease of rice (Oryza sativa L.) caused by the pathogen Gibberella fujikuroi (also known as Fusarium fujikuroi). This study was carried out to identify novel quantitative trait loci (QTLs) from an indica variety Zenith. We performed a QTL mapping using 180 F_2:9 recombinant inbred lines (RILs) derived from a cross between the resistant variety, Zenith, and the susceptible variety, Ilpum. A primary QTL study using the genotypes and phenotypes of the RILs indicated that the locus qBK1^z conferring bakanae disease resistance from the Zenith was located in a 2.8 Mb region bordered by the two RM (Rice Microsatellite) markers, RM1331 and RM3530 on chromosome 1. The log of odds (LOD) score of qBK1^z was 13.43, accounting for 30.9% of the total phenotypic variation. A finer localization of qBK1^z was delimited at an approximate 730 kb interval in the physical map between Chr01_1435908 (1.43 Mbp) and RM10116 (2.16 Mbp). Introducing qBK1^z or pyramiding with other previously identified QTLs could provide effective genetic control of bakanae disease in rice.

Bakanae disease is an important fungal disease caused by Gibberella fujikuroi. Incidence of rice bakanae disease creates serious problems in the foremost rice growing countries, and no rice variety has been found to be completely resistant to this disease. However, breeding rice varieties resistant to bakanae disease may be a cost-saving solution preferable to the application of fungicides. In this study, we aimed to determine the exact position and the candidate gene for qBK1, a major resistant quantitative trait locus (QTLs) for bakanae disease. The genotypes/phenotypes of recombinants selected from backcrossed recombinant inbred lines of two rice varieties, Shingwang (resistant) and Ilpum (susceptible), indicated that the locus qBK1, conferring resistance to bakanae disease in Shingwang, was delimited to a 35-kb interval delimited by InDel 18 (23.637 Mbp) and InDel 19–14 (23.672 Mbp). Sequence analysis of this 35-kb region revealed four candidate genes, LOC_Os01g41770, LOC_Os01g41780, LOC_Os01g41790, and LOC_Os01g41800. There were many non-synonymous SNPs in LOC_Os01g41770 and the transcript of LOC_Os01g41790 was early terminated in Shingwang, whereas there were no differences in both LOC_Os01g41780 and LOC_Os01g41800 sequences between Ilpum and Shingwang. Expression profiling of the four candidate genes showed the up-regulation of LOC_Os01g41770, LOC_Os01g41780, and LOC_Os01g41790 in Ilpum and of LOC_Os01g41800 in Shingwang after inoculation of G. fujikuroi. Utilization of marker-assisted selection (MAS) with a precise molecular marker on qBK1 could provide an effective tool for breeding rice varieties resistant to bakanae disease. To our knowledge, this is the first report on fine mapping and candidate gene approaches for identifying the gene for qBK1.