Acta Agriculturae Boreali-Sinica ›› 2026, Vol. 41 ›› Issue (4): 1-11. doi: 10.7668/hbnxb.20196364

Special Issue: Rice Biotechnology

• Crop Genetics & Breeding·Germplasm Resources·Biotechnology •     Next Articles

Stem Characteristics of Super Rice Nanjing 5718 and the Molecular Mechanism of Its Lodging Resistance

SONG Yue1, AN Hongqiang2, CHEN Yingying2, ZHAO Qingyong2, LI Cheng2, ZHU Zhen2, LIANG Wenhua2, ZHOU Lihui2, ZHAO Ling2, ZHU Keming1, ZHANG Yadong1,2   

  1. 1 School of Biological Science and Technology, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013, China
    2 Institute of Food Crops, Jiangsu Academy of Agricultural Sciences,National Salt-tolerant Rice Technology Innovation Center,East China Center, Nanjing 210014, China
  • Received:2025-08-11 Published:2026-08-28

Abstract:

The super rice variety Nanjing 5718 has been designated as a leading variety by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs and has demonstrated outstanding lodging resistance in large-scale production.Studying the stem characteristics of Nanjing 5718 and elucidating the molecular mechanisms underlying its lodging resistance can provide new insights for breeding lodging-resistant rice varieties.The lodging-resistant super rice Nanjing 5718 and two varieties,Nanjing 518 and Nanjing 58,with weak lodging resistance,were used as materials to compare agronomic traits,stem characteristics and their correlation with lodging resistance.The plant height and center of gravity of Nanjing 5718 were significantly lower than those of other varieties at 20 days after heading.The length of the second basal internode,stem diameter and stem wall thickness of the second and third basal internodes of Nanjing 5718 were significantly higher than other varieties at 20 days after heading.High content of cellulase and lignin in the stem was the important factor leading to strong lodging resistance.No significant differences in cellulase activity were observed in the second basal internodes among the three varieties.Compared to the other two varieties,only the pPLAⅢα,bHLH002,ILA1 and NAC5 among the 102 genes related to the cellulose and lignin biosynthetic pathways had missense mutations in their coding regions in Nanjing 5718.The relative expression levels of key cellulose biosynthesis-regulating genes,such as MYB61, SLR1,PIL13, PG3, ERF34,DPH1 and MYB7 were significantly different between Nanjing 5718 and Nanjing 58.Significant differences were also observed in the relative expression levels of some lignin metabolism genes between Nanjing 5718 and Nanjing 58:4CL3,RLM1,CYP98A4,SWN1,PAL1,and so on.The differential expression of those genes in basal internodes likely underlies the high cellulose and lignin content of stem and consequent strong lodging resistance in Nanjing 5718.In conclusion,the strong lodging resistance of the super rice variety Nanjing 5718 results from its increased internode diameter and stem wall thickness.The higher contents of cellulose and lignin in the internodes provide a structural basis for this enhanced lodging resistance.Variations in the expression of key genes involved in the cellulose and lignin biosynthesis pathways may be the primary factor contributing to the superior lodging resistance observed in Nanjing 5718.

Key words: Rice, Lodging resistance, Stem, Cellulose, Molecular mechanism

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Cite this article

SONG Yue, AN Hongqiang, CHEN Yingying, ZHAO Qingyong, LI Cheng, ZHU Zhen, LIANG Wenhua, ZHOU Lihui, ZHAO Ling, ZHU Keming, ZHANG Yadong. Stem Characteristics of Super Rice Nanjing 5718 and the Molecular Mechanism of Its Lodging Resistance[J]. Acta Agriculturae Boreali-Sinica, 2026, 41(4): 1-11. doi: 10.7668/hbnxb.20196364.

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