Iron Response Genes in Rice, Genome Landscape and Function

Rice is an important crop in Brazil, which is the largest producer outside Asia. The majority of rice produced in Brazil is under irrigation by flooding, which enables high yields due to its ability to better control weeds and to promote a more stable production environment. The water layer forms an anaerobic environment in which bacteria reduce organic compounds and elements. Among these changes, iron is reduced to ferrous iron, which is readily available to rice plants and, depending on its excess availability in the soil, can become toxic. Our group has been studying iron homeostasis genes and the response of tolerant and sensitive genotypes to iron excess. Microarrays and later RNASeq experiments have revealed an interesting pattern of response in genes and retrotransposons to iron excess. The progress in this understanding of iron homeostasis in rice is discussed.