Open Access

REVIEW

The Genetic and Biochemical Mechanisms Underlying Cereal Seed Dormancy

Sasa Jing¹, Yuan Tian¹, Heng Zhang², John T. Hancock³, Ying Zhu^2,*, Ping Li^1,*

1 Shanghai Key Laboratory of Bio-Energy Crops, Research Center for Natural Products, Plant Science Center, School of Life Sciences, Shanghai University, Shanghai, 200444, China
2 State Key Laboratory for Managing Biotic and Chemical Treats to the Quality and Safety of Agro-products, Research Center for Crop Molecular Breeding at Zhejiang Province, Institute of Virology and Biotechnology, Zhejiang Academy of Agricultural Science, Hangzhou, 310021, China
3 Department of Applied Sciences, University of the West of England, Bristol, BS16 1QY, UK

* Corresponding Authors: Ying Zhu. Email: ; Ping Li. Email:

Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany 2023, 92(4), 1203-1214. https://doi.org/10.32604/phyton.2023.026305

Received 29 August 2022; Accepted 11 November 2022; Issue published 06 January 2023

Abstract

The crop seeds have been a staple food for humans, and seed yield is important for sustaining agriculture development and enhancing human adaptability to food risks. The phenomenon of pre-harvest sprouting (PHS), caused by seed dormancy deficiency, and the phenomenon of low seedling emergence caused by seed deep dormancy, will lead to a reduction in agricultural production. Therefore, it is particularly important to understand the regulation mechanisms of seed dormancy. There are many studies on the regulation of seed dormancy in rice, but there are few studies on the regulation of seed dormancy in other crops, and the research on its mechanism is not thorough enough. In this paper, we comprehensively summarize the regulation mechanisms of cereal seed dormancy, including rice, barley and wheat, discussing the integral mechanism of seed dormancy. This information should provide new insights for developing versatile cultivated lines to improve crop yield and economic benefits.

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Keywords

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