Effects of the number of pollen grains on cold tolerance at the booting stage in rice lines with QTLs for cold tolerance

This study was conducted to clarify the relationship between the number of pollen grains per anther and spikelet fertility under low temperature conditions in the rice cultivars and lines including lines with quantitative trait loci (QTL) for cold tolerance, adapted to the Tohoku region of northern Japan. Cold-water treatment decreased anther length, the number of pollen grains per anther, and spikelet fertility in all cultivars and lines. The number of pollen grains was proportional to anther length in all cultivars and lines and under all temperatures. Spikelet fertility decreased with decreasing the number of pollen grains in cold-water treatments at 18.5 and 19.3 °C. ‘Ouu 415’, with the qLTB3 QTL for cold tolerance, had 28% more pollen grains and 9% higher spikelet fertility than the recurrent parent, ‘Hitomebore’, in the 18.5 °C cold-water treatment, suggesting that qLTB3 increased both parameters. Lines with the qCTB8 QTL for cold tolerance had significantly more pollen grains in two of the three years and significantly higher spikelet fertility in all three years in the 19.3 °C cold-water treatment, suggesting that qCTB8 reinforced cold tolerance. Ctb1, a proposed cold-tolerance QTL, had no effect on the number of pollen grains or spikelet fertility. In conclusion, the cultivars and lines with more pollen grains had a higher cold tolerance. Some of QTLs were inferred to increase the number of pollen grains and reinforce cold tolerance