Harnessing the hidden genetic diversity for improving multiple abiotic stress tolerance in rice

Ali et al. describe a rice breeding strategy to improve abiotic stress tolerance as well as to accelerate the speed to achieving homozygosity. The researchers named this particular technique as “Green Super Rice” (GSR) breeding technology. They use a backcross (BC) breeding approach to fix breeding lines which are tolerant of multiple abiotic stresses and also perform well under normal irrigated conditions to generate large set of improved and tolerant lines to abiotic and biotic stresses (introgression lines). Data from several lines grown in the field are described. (Summary by Sridhar Gutam)  PLoS One. 10.1371/journal.pone.0172515