title: Improving photosynthesis and crop productivity by accelerating recovery from photoprotection.
abstract: Crop leaves in full sunlight dissipate damaging excess absorbed light energy as heat. When sunlit leaves are shaded by clouds or other leaves, this protective dissipation continues for many minutes and reduces photosynthesis. Calculations have shown that this could cost field crops up to 20% of their potential yield. Here, we describe the bioengineering of an accelerated response to natural shading events in Nicotiana (tobacco), resulting in increased leaf carbon dioxide uptake and plant dry matter productivity by about 15% in fluctuating light. Because the photoprotective mechanism that has been altered is common to all flowering plants and crops, the findings provide proof of concept for a route to obtaining a sustainable increase in productivity for food crops and a much-needed yield jump.
authors.affiliation: Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois, 1206 West Gregory Drive, Urbana, IL 61801, USA.
authors.forename: Johannes
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kromdijk
authors.affiliation: Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois, 1206 West Gregory Drive, Urbana, IL 61801, USA. niyogi@berkeley.edu slong@illinois.edu.|Institute of Plant Genetics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Ulica Strzeszyńska 34, 60-479 Poznań, Poland.
authors.forename: Katarzyna
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Głowacka
authors.affiliation: Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, 111 Koshland Hall, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720-3102, USA.
authors.forename: Lauriebeth
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Leonelli
authors.affiliation: Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, 111 Koshland Hall, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720-3102, USA.
authors.forename: Stéphane T
authors.initials: ST
authors.lastname: Gabilly
authors.affiliation: Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, 111 Koshland Hall, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720-3102, USA.|Molecular Biophysics and Integrated Bioimaging Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA.
authors.forename: Masakazu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Iwai
authors.affiliation: Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, 111 Koshland Hall, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720-3102, USA. niyogi@berkeley.edu slong@illinois.edu.|Molecular Biophysics and Integrated Bioimaging Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA.
authors.forename: Krishna K
authors.initials: KK
authors.lastname: Niyogi
authors.affiliation: Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois, 1206 West Gregory Drive, Urbana, IL 61801, USA. niyogi@berkeley.edu slong@illinois.edu.|Lancaster Environment Centre, University of Lancaster, Lancaster LA1 1YX, UK.
authors.forename: Stephen P
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Long
mesh_terms: D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D057005:Bioengineering; D002245:Carbon Dioxide / Q000378:metabolism; D018556:Crops, Agricultural / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000528:radiation effects; D003624:Darkness; D045342:Light-Harvesting Protein Complexes / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D019684:Magnoliopsida / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism / Q000528:radiation effects; D010088:Oxidoreductases / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D010788:Photosynthesis; D045332:Photosystem II Protein Complex / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D018515:Plant Leaves / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism; D030821:Plants, Genetically Modified / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism / Q000528:radiation effects; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D013472:Sunlight; D014026:Nicotiana / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000528:radiation effects
chemical_list: D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins; D045342:Light-Harvesting Protein Complexes; D045332:Photosystem II Protein Complex; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D002245:Carbon Dioxide; D010088:Oxidoreductases; C023290:violaxanthin de-epoxidase; C097153:zeaxanthin epoxidase