Identification and characterization of genomic regions on chromosomes 4 and 8 that control the rate of photosynthesis in rice leaves.

DNA marker-assisted selection appears to be a promising strategy for improving rates of leaf photosynthesis in rice. The rate of leaf photosynthesis was significantly higher in a high-yielding indica variety, Habataki, than in the most popular Japanese variety, Koshihikari, at the full heading stage as a result of the higher level of leaf nitrogen at the same rate of application of nitrogen and the higher stomatal conductance even when the respective levels of leaf nitrogen were the same. The higher leaf nitrogen content of Habataki was caused by the greater accumulation of nitrogen by plants.