Progress and Prospect of Breeding Utilization of Green Revolution Gene SD1 in Rice

Abstract

Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is one of the most important cereal crops in the world. The identification of sd1 mutants in rice resulted in a semi-dwarf phenotype that was used by breeders to improve yields. Investigations of sd1 mutants initiated the “green revolution” for rice and staved off famine for many people in the 1960s. The smaller plant height conferred by sd1 allele gives the plants lodging resistance even with a high amount of nitrogen fertilizer. Guang-chang-ai-carrying sd1 was the first high-yielding rice variety that capitalized on the semi-dwarf trait, aiming to significantly improve the rice yield in China. IR8, known as the miracle rice, was also bred by using sd1. The green revolution gene sd1 in rice has been used for decades, but was not identified for a long time. The SD1 gene encodes the rice Gibberellin 20 oxidase-2 (GA20ox2). As such, the SD1 gene is instrumental in uncovering the molecular mechanisms underlying gibberellin biosynthesis There are ten different alleles of SD1. These alleles are identified by genome sequencing within several donor lines in breeding for semi-dwarf rice. Apart from breeding applications and the molecular mechanism of GA biosynthesis, the SD1 gene is also involved in the molecular regulation of other important agronomic traits, like nitrogen fertilizer utilization. The dentification of new alleles of SD1 can be obtained by mutagenesis and genome editing. These new alleles will play an important role in improving the resource diversity of semi-dwarf breeding in the future.