title: Increasing CO2 threatens human nutrition.
abstract: Dietary deficiencies of zinc and iron are a substantial global public health problem. An estimated two billion people suffer these deficiencies, causing a loss of 63 million life-years annually. Most of these people depend on C3 grains and legumes as their primary dietary source of zinc and iron. Here we report that C3 grains and legumes have lower concentrations of zinc and iron when grown under field conditions at the elevated atmospheric CO2 concentration predicted for the middle of this century. C3 crops other than legumes also have lower concentrations of protein, whereas C4 crops seem to be less affected. Differences between cultivars of a single crop suggest that breeding for decreased sensitivity to atmospheric CO2 concentration could partly address these new challenges to global health.
authors.affiliation: 1] Department of Environmental Health, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, 02215, USA [2] Harvard University Center for the Environment, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, USA.
authors.forename: Samuel S
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Myers
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Health, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, 02215, USA.
authors.forename: Antonella
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zanobetti
authors.affiliation: The Department of Geography and Environmental Development, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, PO Box 653, Beer Sheva, Israel.
authors.forename: Itai
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Kloog
authors.affiliation: Department of Earth and Planetary Science, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, USA.
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Huybers
authors.affiliation: Department of Plant Biology and Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois 61801, USA.
authors.forename: Andrew D B
authors.initials: AD
authors.lastname: Leakey
authors.affiliation: Department of Plant Sciences, University of California at Davis, Davis, California 95616, USA.
authors.forename: Arnold J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Bloom
authors.affiliation: Department of Plant Sciences, University of California at Davis, Davis, California 95616, USA.
authors.forename: Eli
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Carlisle
authors.affiliation: University of Pennsylvania, Department of Biology, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA.
authors.forename: Lee H
authors.initials: LH
authors.lastname: Dietterich
authors.affiliation: Department of Environment and Primary Industries, Horsham, Victoria 3001, Australia.
authors.forename: Glenn
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Fitzgerald
authors.affiliation: National Institute for Agro-Environmental Sciences, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 305-8604, Japan.
authors.forename: Toshihiro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hasegawa
authors.affiliation: Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, USA.
authors.forename: N Michele
authors.initials: NM
authors.lastname: Holbrook
authors.affiliation: United States Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service, Soybean/Maize Germplasm, Pathology, and Genetics Research Unit, Department of Crop Sciences, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois 61801, USA.
authors.forename: Randall L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Nelson
authors.affiliation: School of Plant Sciences, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona 85721, USA.
authors.forename: Michael J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Ottman
authors.affiliation: United States Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service, Aberdeen, Idaho 83210, USA.
authors.forename: Victor
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Raboy
authors.affiliation: National Institute for Agro-Environmental Sciences, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 305-8604, Japan.
authors.forename: Hidemitsu
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Sakai
authors.affiliation: The Nature Conservancy, Santa Fe, New Mexico 87544, USA.
authors.forename: Karla A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Sartor
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Health, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, 02215, USA.
authors.forename: Joel
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Schwartz
authors.affiliation: Department of Agriculture and Food Systems, Melbourne School of Land and Environment, The University of Melbourne, Creswick, Victoria 3363, Australia.
authors.forename: Saman
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Seneweera
authors.affiliation: Department of Forest and Ecosystem Science, Melbourne School of Land and Environment, The University of Melbourne, Creswick, Victoria 3363, Australia.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tausz
authors.affiliation: National Institute for Agro-Environmental Sciences, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 305-8604, Japan.
authors.forename: Yasuhiro
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Usui
mesh_terms: D000388:Air / Q000032:analysis; D001272:Atmosphere / Q000737:chemistry; D001315:Australia; D001947:Breeding; D002245:Carbon Dioxide / Q000032:analysis / Q000494:pharmacology*; D018556:Crops, Agricultural / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D004032:Diet; D002523:Edible Grain / Q000737:chemistry / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D007887:Fabaceae / Q000737:chemistry / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D014943:Global Health / Q000639:trends; D006801:Humans; D007501:Iron / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism; D000090463:Iron Deficiencies; D007564:Japan; D009752:Nutritional Status; D009753:Nutritive Value / Q000187:drug effects*; D010788:Photosynthesis / Q000187:drug effects; D010833:Phytic Acid / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism; D011634:Public Health / Q000639:trends*; D014481:United States; D015032:Zinc / Q000032:analysis / Q000172:deficiency / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D002245:Carbon Dioxide; D010833:Phytic Acid; D007501:Iron; D015032:Zinc