Next generation of elevated [CO2] experiments with crops: a critical investment for feeding the future world.
A rising global population and demand for protein-rich diets are increasing pressure to maximize agricultural productivity. Rising atmospheric [CO(2)] is altering global temperature and precipitation patterns, which challenges agricultural productivity. While rising [CO(2)] provides a unique opportunity to increase the productivity of C(3) crops, average yield stimulation observed to date is well below potential gains. Thus, there is room for improving productivity. However, only a fraction of available germplasm of crops has been tested for CO(2) responsiveness. Yield is a complex phenotypic trait determined by the interactions of a genotype with the environment. Selection of promising genotypes and characterization of response mechanisms will only be effective if crop improvement and systems biology approaches are closely linked to production environments, that is, on the farm within major growing regions. Free air CO(2) enrichment (FACE) experiments can provide the platform upon which to conduct genetic screening and elucidate the inheritance and mechanisms that underlie genotypic differences in productivity under elevated [CO(2)]. We propose a new generation of large-scale, low-cost per unit area FACE experiments to identify the most CO(2)-responsive genotypes and provide starting lines for future breeding programmes. This is necessary if we are to realize the potential for yield gains in the future.
US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service and Photosynthesis Research Unit, Urbana, IL, USA. lisa.ainsworth@ars.usda.gov
Elizabeth A
EA
Ainsworth
Claus
C
Beier
Carlo
C
Calfapietra
Reinhart
R
Ceulemans
Mylene
M
Durand-Tardif
Graham D
GD
Farquhar
Douglas L
DL
Godbold
George R
GR
Hendrey
Thomas
T
Hickler
Jörg
J
Kaduk
David F
DF
Karnosky
Bruce A
BA
Kimball
Christian
C
Körner
Maarten
M
Koornneef
Tanguy
T
Lafarge
Andrew D B
AD
Leakey
Keith F
KF
Lewin
Stephen P
SP
Long
Remy
R
Manderscheid
David L
DL
McNeil
Timothy A
TA
Mies
Franco
F
Miglietta
Jack A
JA
Morgan
John
J
Nagy
Richard J
RJ
Norby
Robert M
RM
Norton
Kevin E
KE
Percy
Alistair
A
Rogers
Jean-Francois
JF
Soussana
Mark
M
Stitt
Hans-Joachim
HJ
Weigel
Jeffrey W
JW
White
D000064:Acclimatization; D000388:Air; D002245:Carbon Dioxide / Q000378:metabolism*; D018556:Crops, Agricultural / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D005523:Food Supply; D005838:Genotype; D017752:Greenhouse Effect; D010641:Phenotype; D010788:Photosynthesis / Q000502:physiology; D012107:Research Design
D002245:Carbon Dioxide