Species- and genome-wide dissection of the shoot ionome in Brassica napus and its relationship to seedling development

Knowing the genetic basis of the plant ionome is essential for understandingthe control of nutrient transport and accumulation. The aim of this research wasto (i) study mineral nutrient concentrations in a large and diverse set of Brassicanapus, (ii) describe the relationships between the shoot ionome and seedling development,and (iii) identify genetic regions associated with variation of the shootionome. The plant material under study was a germplasm set consisting of 509 inbredlines that was genotyped by a 6K single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) arrayand phenotyped by analyzing the concentrations of eleven mineral nutrients in theshoot of 30 days old seedlings. Among mineral concentrations, positive correlationswere found, whereas mineral concentrations were mainly negatively correlated withseedling development traits from earlier studies. In a genome-wide association mappingapproach, altogether 29 significantly associated loci were identified across seventraits after correcting for multiple testing. The associations included a locus witheffects on the concentrations of Cu, Mn, and Zn on chromosome C3, and a genetic region with multipleassociations for Na concentration on chromosome A9. This region was situated within an association hotspot close to SOS1, a key gene for Na tolerance in plants

Strategies to improve field establishment of canola: A review

International audienceGood field establishment provides the foundation for a productive crop. Achieving an adequate seedling population ensures the crop forms an effective canopy to capture light and compete with weeds, and an effective root system for uptake of water and nutrients. Canola (oilseed rape; Brassica napus L.), the world's third largest oilseed crop, commonly fails to establish effectively in many regions, which limits yield potential and increases agronomic costs to control weeds, diseases and pests. In the worst cases, crops must be re-sown at significant cost. Despite the evidence for poor establishment in canola globally, the critical soil and plant factors limiting establishment, and opportunities to overcome these are not well understood. Here we review what is known about the factors that contribute to poor canola establishment, focusing on the genetic, agronomic and farming system opportunities to improve establishment. Effective canola establishment is expected to become ever more challenging due to an increasingly variable climate and restrictions in the use of crop protection products. Solutions must integrate breeding, agronomic and seed treatment technologies, and use insights from different canola cropping systems around the world to meet these significant challenges

Linking integrative plant physiology with agronomy to sustain future plant production

Sustainable production of high-quality food is one of today’s major challenges of agriculture. To achieve this goal, a better understanding of plant physiological processes and a more integrated approach with respect to current agronomical practices are needed. In this review, various examples of cooperation between integrative plant physiology and agronomy are discussed, and this demonstrates the complexity of these interrelations. The examples are meant to stimulate discussions on how both research areas can deliver solutions to avoid looming food crises due to population growth and climate change. In the last decades, unprecedented progress has been made in the understanding of how plants grow and develop in a variety of environments and in response to biotic stresses, but appropriate management and interpretation of the resulting complex datasets remains challenging. After providing an historical overview of integrative plant physiology, we discuss possible avenues of integration, involving advances in integrative plant physiology, to sustain plant production in the current post-omics era. Finally, recommendations are provided on how to practice the transdisciplinary mindset required, emphasising a broader approach to sustainable production of high-quality food in the future, whereby all those who are involved are made partners in knowledge generation processes through transdisciplinary cooperation