Abstract
BackgroundCarbohydrate partitioning and utilization is a key determinant of growth rate and of yield in plants and crops. There are few studies on crops in field conditions. In Arabidopsis, starch accumulation in leaves is a negative indicator of growth rate.ResultsHere, we wished to establish if starch accumulation in leaves could potentially be a marker for growth rate and yield in crops such as maize. We characterized daily patterns of non-structural carbohydrate (NSC) at different growth stages over two seasons for maize hybrids in the field. In 27 commercial hybrids, we found a significant negative relationship between residual starch in leaves and plant growth, but not with final yield and biomass. We then focused on three typical hybrids and established a method for calculation of C turnover in photosynthetic leaves that took into account photosynthesis, leaf area and NSC accumulation. The ratios of stored NSC decreased from approximately 15% to less than 4% with ongoing ontogeny changes from V7 to 28 days after pollination.ConclusionThe proportion rather than absolute amount of carbon partitioned to starch in leaves at all stages of development related well with yield and biomass accumulation. It is proposed that screening plants at an early vegetative growth stage such as V7 for partitioning into storage may provide a prospective method for maize hybrid selection. Our study provides the basis for further validation as a screening tool for yield.
Highlights
Carbohydrate partitioning and utilization is a key determinant of growth rate and of yield in plants and crops
In selected hybrids we examined in greater depth diurnal patterns of leaf photosynthesis and non-structural carbohydrate (NSC) concentrations and using the data developed a calculation method of NSC turnover
Starch accumulation in 27 maize hybrids As found in Arabidopsis [10, 12], significant negative relationships of starch at the end of night (6:00) with growth amounts and relative growth rates were found for the 27 maize hybrids at seedling stage in the 2015 season (Fig. 1)
Summary
Carbohydrate partitioning and utilization is a key determinant of growth rate and of yield in plants and crops. There are three metabolic fates for immediate photo-assimilate carbon in leaves: a) direct consumption in respiration, b) export for growth mainly as sucrose, and c) storage in leaves in the form of starch and total soluble carbohydrates (TSC), which are transported to various sinks at night [6]. In many species, such as Arabidopsis, the major carbohydrate that is transiently stored in leaves is starch, which has near linear rates of synthesis and breakdown. It is noteworthy that NSC turnover may differ within genotypes and developmental stage in
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