13 ERA-CAPS Future-proofing potato: Mechanisms and markers for global-warming tolerant ideotypes

马铃薯是仅次于水稻和小麦的世界第三大粮食作物。由于其广泛的栽培和高产，在面对不断增长的世界人口时，它被认为是粮食安全的关键物种。然而，马铃薯在其生活史的不同阶段特别容易受到高温的影响。高温强烈抑制块茎形成，对块茎的贮藏和货架期产生负面影响，降低了种薯的适合度。考虑到全球变暖导致的气温上升的负面影响，培育耐热胁迫的新品种是马铃薯可持续增产的迫切需要。在这项建议中，将综合运用生理学、遗传学、基因组学、代谢组学和自然变异研究的方法，分析高温对(1)马铃薯植株的库源关系、(2)马铃薯块茎发育、(3)淀粉积累和块茎品质以及(4)块茎休眠的影响。该项目的成果将是关于马铃薯基因及其功能的新知识，这些知识可用于育种计划，以提高气候变暖时的产量。

Potato is the third most important food crop in the world after rice and wheat. Because of its widely distributed cultivation and high yields, it is considered a critical species in terms of food security in face of a growing world population. However, potato is particularly vulnerable to high temperature during various stages of its life cycle. Elevated temperatures strongly suppress tuberisation, negatively affect storage and shelf life of tubers and reduce fitness of seed potatoes. Breeding new heat-stress tolerant cultivars is an urgent need for sustainable increases in potato production, given the negative impact of the rises in temperature due to global warming. In this proposal, an integrated approach will be used by combining physiology, genetics, genomics, metabolomics and natural variation studies to analyze the impact of elevated temperatures on (1) sink-source relations of potato plants, (2) potato tuber development, (3) starch accumulation and tuber quality and (4) tuber dormancy. The outcomes of the project will be new knowledge of potato genes and their function that can be used in breeding programmes to increase yields in warmer climates.