Effects of increased levels of atmospheric CO2 and high temperatures on rice growth and quality.

Shuo Liu,Song-He Wang,Muhammad Ahmed Waqas,Xiang-Yang Xiong,Yun-Fan Wan,Jauhar Ali

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0187724

Abstract

The increased atmospheric temperatures resulting from the increased concentration of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) have had a profound influence on global rice production. China serves as an important area for producing and consuming rice. Therefore, exploring the effects of the simultaneously rising levels of atmospheric CO2 and temperatures on rice growth and quality in the future is very important. The present study was designed to measure the most important aspects of variation for rice-related physiological, ecological and quality indices in different growing periods under a simultaneous increase of CO2 and temperature, through simulation experiments in climate-controlled growth chambers, with southern rice as the study object. The results indicated that the ecological indices, rice phenology, and leaf area would decrease under a simultaneous increase of CO2 and temperature. For the physiological indices, Malondialdehyde (MDA) levels increased significantly in the seedling period. However, it showed the trend of increase and subsequent decrease in the heading and filling periods. In addition, the decomposition of soluble protein (SP) and soluble sugar (SS) accelerated in filling period. The rice quality index of the Head Rice Rate showed the decreasing trend and subsequent increase, but the Chalky Rice Rate and Protein Content indices gradually decreased while the Gel Consistency gradually increased.

Highlights

By the end of the 21st century, the atmospheric greenhouse gas CO2 concentration (CO2) is predicted to increase from the current 370 μmolÁmol−1 to 540–970 μmolÁmol−1, and reach 550 μmolÁmol−1 by 2050 and 750 μmolÁmol−1 by 2100; global surface temperatures will increase from approximately 2 ̊C and 4 ̊C compared to 1990, respectively [1]
The results of the present study showed that the number of days in the entire growth period for rice was shortened as CO2 and temperature simultaneously increased
Effects of increased levels of atmospheric CO2 and high temperatures on rice growth and quality entire growth stage by 26 days, with higher proportions occurring in the elongation and filling stages

Summary

Introduction

By the end of the 21st century, the atmospheric greenhouse gas CO2 concentration (CO2) is predicted to increase from the current 370 μmolÁmol−1 to 540–970 μmolÁmol−1, and reach 550 μmolÁmol−1 by 2050 and 750 μmolÁmol−1 by 2100; global surface temperatures will increase from approximately 2 ̊C and 4 ̊C compared to 1990, respectively [1]. The level of CO2 in the atmosphere will continue to increase so that climate warming will become the main feature of future climate change. The interaction between CO2 and temperature will certainly exert a profound influence on the earth’s environment and global agricultural production [2,3,4,5]. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript

Methods

Results

Conclusion