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RESEARCH ARTICLE

Effect of soluble sugar content in silique wall on seed oil accumulation during the seed-filling stage in Brassica napus

Fei Ni A , Jiahuan Liu A , Jing Zhang A , Mohammad Nauman Khan A , Tao Luo A , Zhenghua Xu https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4751-2874 A B and Liyong Hu A B
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A MOA Key Laboratory of Crop Ecophysiology and Farming System in the Middle Reaches of the Yangtze River/College of Plant Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, Hubei, China.

B Corresponding authors. Email: liyonghu@mail.hzau.edu.cn; xzh@mail.hzau.edu.cn

Crop and Pasture Science 69(12) 1251-1263 https://doi.org/10.1071/CP17392
Submitted: 20 October 2017  Accepted: 1 October 2018   Published: 6 December 2018

Abstract

Soluble sugar content in silique wall and seeds of rapeseed (Brassica napus L.) has significant effects on seed oil formation and accumulation. We studied the relationship between soluble sugar content in B. napus seeds and silique wall and oil concentration under field conditions in two cropping seasons, and examined changes in soluble sugar content in seeds and silique wall under different nitrogen (N) levels. Two commercialised Chinese rapeseed varieties, HZ9 and HZ62, with high seed yield and different N responses were used. Our results indicated that carbon (C) : N ratio and soluble sugar content in silique wall had the greater effect on seed oil concentration. When C : N ratio and soluble sugar content in silique wall were within 5–15% and 10–25%, respectively, plants had relatively well coordinated C and N metabolism, facilitating oil accumulation. During 25–35 days of silique development, when C : N ratio and soluble sugar content in silique wall were within 10–15 and 15–25%, respectively, oil synthesis was fastest; the highest accumulation rate was 3.8% per day. When they were each <5%, seeds tended to mature, and oil synthesis gradually decreased, ceased or degraded. During the early stage of silique development, if C : N ratio and soluble sugar content in silique wall were >15% and 30%, there was no apparent tendency for oil accumulation, probably because of adverse environmental conditions. When N application increased from 0 to 270 kg ha–1, final oil concentration in seeds decreased by 0.024%. In summary, C : N ratio and soluble sugar content in silique wall are important in regulating seed oil concentration, whereas excessive N application significantly reduced seed oil concentration. Therefore, appropriate reduction of N application would save resources, provide environment benefits and increase rapeseed oil production with no substantial reduction in seed yield, through coordinated seed yield and oil concentration.

Additional keywords: canola, chlorophyll, nitrogen fertiliser.


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