Understanding the mechanistic basis of crop yield reductions in warm winters

在英国和欧洲，高产的可耕地作物在秋天播种，次年春天开花。在冬季，它们需要低温来促进开花，并且在花发育期间也需要低温来促进高生育力。在此之前，我们的研究表明，在某些生长季节，花朵发育期间的低温不足会导致产量大幅下降，但这些低温影响产量的确切机制尚不清楚。本项目将开发能够应对更高低温的冬油菜新品种，从而在气候变暖时获得更高的产量。该项目将利用现代科学方法加速培育更适合21世纪世纪欧洲环境的新作物品种，利用基因组技术发现在适度寒冷环境下获得高产的基因变异，并提高我们对暖冬减产的分子和生理基础的认识。该项目将设法了解气候变化对农作物的影响，使用的技术包括人工地块变暖的田间试验，以及能够以高分辨率模拟真实的环境并模拟一年中特定时间变暖的新的受控环境设施。

In the UK and Europe high yielding arable crops are sown in autumn and flower the following spring. During winter they require chilling to promote flowering and also during flower development to promote high fertility. Previously, our research has shown that insufficient chilling during flower development leads to large yield reductions in some growing seasons, but the precise mechanism by which these effects of chilling affect yield remain unclear.This project will develop new varieties of winter oilseed rape that are able to respond to higher chilling temperatures, and thus will have more resilient high yields as the climate warms. The project will use modern scientific methods to accelerate the breeding of new crop varieties more suited to the environments of 21st century Europe.Genomic techniques will be used to discover gene variants that allow high yields in environments with modest chilling, and improve our understanding of the molecular and physiological basis of yield reductions in warm winters. The project will seek to understand the effects of climate change on crops, using techniques such as a field trials with artificial plotwarming, and new controlled environment facilities that can mimic real environments at high resolution and simulate warming at specific times of the year.