Prescreening in large populations as a tool for identifying elevated CO₂-responsive genotypes in plants

Area of Science:

• Plant science
• Genetics
• Agricultural science

Background:

• Elevated atmospheric CO2 (e[CO2]) enhances photosynthesis and productivity in C3 plants, including vital food and forest crops.
• Exploiting intraspecific variation in e[CO2] responsiveness can boost crop yields, but large-scale genotype selection is hindered by space and cost limitations of CO2 fumigation facilities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To discuss the advantages of phenotypic prescreening for identifying e[CO2]-responsive genotypes in large-scale experiments.
• To explore necessary approaches for prescreening and utilizing this data for improved genetic selection of high-performing cultivars under e[CO2].

Main Methods:

• Utilizing a surrogate for e[CO2] in prescreening to select cultivars for detailed analysis under actual e[CO2] conditions.
• Integrating prescreening data within genotype-phenotype mapping frameworks to understand strengths and limitations.

Main Results:

• Phenotypic prescreening is a necessary tool to overcome space and cost constraints in genome-wide e[CO2] responsiveness experiments.
• Prescreening enables efficient identification and selection of cultivars with superior performance under elevated CO2.

Conclusions:

• Prescreening strategies are crucial for capitalizing on advances in whole genome sequencing for crop improvement under e[CO2].
• Effective prescreening facilitates robust genetic selection of high-yielding cultivars, enhancing agricultural productivity in a changing climate.