Book with abstracts from the COST Action 0905 meeting in ... - UMB
Book with abstracts from the COST Action 0905 meeting in ... - UMB
Book with abstracts from the COST Action 0905 meeting in ... - UMB
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COMBINING NITROGEN AND ZINC FERTILIZATION<br />
FOR IMPROVED MINERAL CONTENT IN WHEAT<br />
Umit Baris Kutman, Bahar Yildiz Kutman, Yasem<strong>in</strong> Ceylan, Ismail Cakmak<br />
Sabanci University, Faculty of Eng<strong>in</strong>eer<strong>in</strong>g and Natural Sciences, 34956, Istanbul, Turkey<br />
Biofortification of cereal gra<strong>in</strong>s <strong>with</strong> z<strong>in</strong>c (Zn) and iron (Fe) is a global challenge. In<br />
order to <strong>in</strong>vestigate <strong>the</strong> potential of N fertilization <strong>in</strong> biofortification of wheat gra<strong>in</strong>, wheat<br />
was grown <strong>with</strong> different N and Zn treatments under growth chamber, greenhouse or field<br />
conditions. Gra<strong>in</strong> Zn and Fe concentrations exhibited significant responses to <strong>in</strong>creas<strong>in</strong>g N<br />
applications not only <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> whole gra<strong>in</strong> but also <strong>the</strong> endosperm, <strong>the</strong> most widely consumed<br />
part of wheat gra<strong>in</strong>. In <strong>the</strong> case of Zn, <strong>the</strong> positive impact of N was dependent on Zn<br />
availability, disappear<strong>in</strong>g at low Zn and becom<strong>in</strong>g more pronounced at high Zn<br />
availability. Nitrogen fertilization was much more effective than Fe fertilization for<br />
improv<strong>in</strong>g <strong>the</strong> Fe concentration of wheat gra<strong>in</strong>. Partion<strong>in</strong>g experiments showed that better<br />
N nutrition enhances both <strong>the</strong> direct uptake and <strong>the</strong> retranslocation routes for gra<strong>in</strong> Zn and<br />
Fe accumulation. Experiments <strong>with</strong> <strong>the</strong> radioisotope 65 Zn demonstrated that higher N is<br />
associated <strong>with</strong> improved uptake, root-to-shoot translocation and remobilization of Zn.<br />
Comb<strong>in</strong>ation of Zn fertilization <strong>with</strong> optimized N applications are not only necessary for<br />
<strong>the</strong> synergistic improvement of gra<strong>in</strong> Zn but also for <strong>the</strong> restriction of Cd uptake. Nitrogen<br />
appears to be a critical component <strong>in</strong> agronomic biofortification, which can rapidly<br />
alleviate <strong>the</strong> Zn and Fe deficiency problems <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> develop<strong>in</strong>g world.