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Functional Plant Biology Functional Plant Biology Society
Plant function and evolutionary biology
RESEARCH ARTICLE

Impact of elevated CO2 and heat stress on wheat pollen viability and grain production

Anowarul I. Bokshi https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5248-8616 A D , Daniel K. Y. Tan A , Rebecca J. Thistlethwaite B , Richard Trethowan A B and Karolin Kunz C
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A The University of Sydney, Plant Breeding Institute, Sydney Institute of Agriculture, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Science, Sydney 2006, NSW, Australia.

B The University of Sydney, I.A. Watson Grains Research Centre, Plant Breeding Institute, Sydney Institute of Agriculture, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Science, Narrabri 2390, NSW, Australia.

C Technical University of Munich, Department of Plant Sciences, Chair of Plant Nutrition, Freising 85354, Germany.

D Corresponding author. Email: anowarul.bokshi@sydney.edu.au

Functional Plant Biology 48(5) 503-514 https://doi.org/10.1071/FP20187
Submitted: 25 June 2020  Accepted: 10 December 2020   Published: 15 January 2021

Abstract

Periods of high temperature and an expected increase in atmospheric CO2 concentration as a result of global climate change are major threats to wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) production. Developing heat-tolerant wheat cultivars demands improved understanding of the impacts of high temperature and elevated CO2 on plant growth and development. This research investigated the interactive effects of heat stress and CO2 concentration on pollen viability and its relationship to grain formation and yield of wheat in greenhouse conditions. Nineteen wheat genotypes and a current cultivar, Suntop, were heat stressed at either meiosis or anthesis at ambient (400 µL L–1) or elevated (800 µL L–1) CO2. Elevated CO2 and heat stress at meiosis reduced pollen viability, spikelet number and grain yield per spike; however, increased tillering at the elevated CO2 level helped to minimise yield loss. Both heat-tolerant genotypes (e.g. genotype 1, 2, 10 or 12) and heat-sensitive genotypes (e.g. genotype 6 or 9) were identified and response related to pollen sensitivity and subsequent impacts on grain yield and yield components were characterised. A high-throughput protocol for screening wheat for heat stress response at elevated CO2 was established and meiosis was the most sensitive stage, affecting pollen viability, grain formation and yield.

Keywords: elevated CO2, grain formation, heat stress, heat-tolerance, meiosis, pollen viability, Triticum aestivum L., wheat, yield.


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