Natural variation in the ORL4 promoter regulates rice leaf rolling to modulate leaf architecture and yield.
Wang X, Xu B, Hu Q, Zhao Y, Zhang Q
Crispr
Rice varieties being developed through this research could increase yields on existing farmland — meaning more food from the same amount of soil, water, and effort that feeds billions of people worldwide.
Rice plants with leaves that curl slightly upward catch sunlight more efficiently across the whole plant, kind of like adjusting window blinds to let in more light evenly. Researchers found a tiny DNA difference near one gene that acts like a dial controlling which way and how much the leaves curl. By tweaking just that one spot in the DNA of an existing high-performing rice variety, they grew plants with better-angled leaves that produced meaningfully more grain when tested in actual farm fields.
Key Findings
A genome-wide study of 802 rice varieties pinpointed 32 genetic locations linked to leaf rolling, with one gene (ORL4) confirmed as a key controller via CRISPR knockout experiments.
A single DNA letter change in the ORL4 promoter region (C vs. T at one position) alters how strongly a transcription factor binds, flipping leaves between adaxially rolled/flat and abaxially rolled shapes.
Precision promoter editing of ORL4 in an elite commercial rice cultivar produced plants with enhanced leaf rolling that achieved a significant yield increase in field trials.
chevron_right Technical Summary
Scientists discovered a genetic switch in rice that controls how leaves curl, then used precision gene editing to create rice plants with better leaf shape and higher grain yields in real field trials.
Abstract Preview
Rice (Oryza sativa L.) leaf rolling enhances canopy architecture and photosynthetic efficiency, thereby improving yield potential. Through genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of 802 Xian and Gen...
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