Assessment of the molecular physiological mechanism of cellular phosphate homeostasis and reutilization in rice

Phosphorus is one of the essential mineral nutrients for crop production. As phosphorus is easily fixed in soil, a large amount of phosphate fertilizer is often applied to meet crop demands. This has resulted in low utilization efficiency of phosphate fertilizers and high environmental risk. Improving the phosphorus utilization efficiency in crops will help reduce the reliance on external phosphorus supply. Many studies have identified the phosphate signaling network and its role in regulation of phosphate uptake in crops. However, the understanding of phosphorus utilization efficiency in crops is still obscure, especially the molecular physiological mechanism of phosphorus reutilization is still unclear. An important reason for this knowledge gap is lack of efficient and economic detection technologies for cellular phosphorus content in plants. Given that the majority of phosphorus that is remobilized in plant is in the form of phosphate, it is necessary to develop a novel plant cellular phosphate detection technology. With this technology, we can understand the underlying molecular mechanisms of how the external phosphorus availability and the internal cellular phosphate content regulate cellular phosphate homeostasis and reutilization in rice. This can provide new theory and technology for the efficient phosphate utilization in rice production.