Number of Pollen Grains in Rice Cultivars with Different Cool-Weather Resistance at the Young Microspore Stage

Abstract

The difference in the number of pollen grains may be the primary factor determining the resistance to cool weather at the young microspore stage in rice (Oryza sativa L.) cultivars. To confirm this hypothesis, we compared the number of pollen grains among the cultivars or lines with various cool-weather resistance. The cultivars or lines used in the experiments were mainly released or grown in the Tohoku district (the northern part of the mainland of Japan). The number of pollen grains showed high correlation with the degree of cool-weather resistance, but considerably varied with the cultivar or line, even in the group having the same cool-weather resistance. Each group with different cool-weather resistance was divided into two subgroups, implying the existence of another genetic factor determining the resistance. The number of pollen grains in the plants cooled at the young microspore stage showed higher correlation with the degree of the cool-weather resistance than that in the control plants without exposure to low temperature. The correlation between the pollen number and spikelet sterility was also analyzed using the data of Satake and Shibata (1992, Jpn. J. Crop Sci. 61 :454–462), who primarily used the cultivars in Hokkaido (the northernmost island of Japan). The results were basically the same as those obtained in the present experiments. These results confirmed the hypothesis that the variation in the number of pollen grains is a primary factor of the resistance to cool weather at the booting stage in the cultivars in the northern part of Japan. The results also suggested the existence of another genetic factor determining the resistance.