Carbon dioxide fertilization effect on rice yield is not sustained over multiple generations
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: Global crop production needs to increase to meet the growing demand for food. Rising atmospheric CO 2 concentration offers opportunities to increase global productivity via the CO 2 fertilization effect on C 3 crops (including rice, Oryza sativa L.). However, whether the CO 2 fertilization effect can be sustained over generations remains unclear. Here, we show that the CO 2 fertilization effects on aboveground biomass, aboveground nitrogen uptake, and yield strongly depends on the number of generations in maternal elevated CO 2 (eCO 2 ) for rice cultivars Yangdao 6 (Y6; indica subspecies) and Wuyungeng 23 (W23; japonica subspecies) in free-air CO 2 enrichment (FACE) experiments. DNA methylation and transcriptome changes provided epigenetic evidence on the multigenerational effects of maternal eCO 2 on aboveground biomass, aboveground nitrogen uptake, and yield in both cultivars/subspecies. Our results highlight that data from multigenerational exposure to FACE experiments are needed to accurately predict crop production and food security in a future high-CO 2 world.
Source: One Earth
Authors: Chuang Cai, Ye Tao, Xinyou Yin, Scott X. Chang, Peter B. Reich, Feng Yu, Shilin Ouyang, Xinyue Gu, Xiong Yang, Lian Song, Xin-Guang Zhu, Gang Liu, Xiaoyuan Yan, Yiqi Luo, Renfang Shen, Chunwu Zhu
Institutions: Chinese Academy of Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Soil Science, State Key Laboratory of Soil and Sustainable Agriculture, Hainan University, Wageningen University & Research, University of Alberta, University of Minnesota, University of Michigan, Western Sydney University, Hunan University, State Key Laboratory of Chemobiosensing and Chemometrics, Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Plant Molecular Genetics, Cornell University
Language: English
Subfield: Plant Science
Domain: Life Sciences
SDGs: Climate action, Zero hunger
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $9,170
Funders: National Natural Science Foundation of China, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China Postdoctoral Science Foundation, National Institute for Agro-Environmental Sciences, Jiangsu Planned Projects for Postdoctoral Research Funds, National Key Research and Development Program of China, Agricultural Research Center
OpenAlex ID: W7124422085