Mutation in CSA creates a new photoperiod-sensitive genic male sterile line applicable for hybrid rice seed production

Rice is a major staple food worldwide. Making hybrid rice has proved to be an effective strategy to significantly increase grain yield. Current hybrid rice technologies rely on male sterile lines and have been used predominantly in indica cultivars. However, intrinsic problems exist in the implementation of these technologies, such as limited germplasms and unpredictable conversions from sterility to fertility in the field. Here, we describe a photoperiod-controlled male sterile line, carbon starved anther (csa), which contains a mutation in an R2R3 MYB transcription regulator of pollen development. This mutation was introduced into indica and japonica rice, and it rendered male sterility under short-day conditions and male fertility under long-day conditions in both lines. Furthermore, F-1 plants of csa and a restorer line JP69 exhibited heterosis (hybrid vigor), suggesting the feasibility of using this mutation to create hybrid rice. The csa-based photoperiod-sensitive male sterile line allows the establishment of a stable two-line hybrid system, which promises to have a significant impact on agriculture.