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Arsenic-Induced Straighthead: An Impending Threat to Sustainable Rice Production in South and South-East Asia!

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Abstract

Straighthead is a physiological disorder of rice (Oryza sativa L.) that results in sterile florets with distorted lemma and palea, and the panicles or heads may not form at all in extreme cases. Heads remain upright at maturity, hence the name ‘straighthead’. The diseased panicles may not emerge from the flag leaf sheath when the disease is severe. Straighthead disease in rice results in poorly developed panicles and significant yield loss. Although other soil physicochemical factors involved, arsenic contamination in soil has also been reported to be closely associated with straighthead of rice. Monosodium methanearsonate has been a popular herbicide in cotton production in the USA, which has shown to cause injuries in rice that are similar to straighthead. Since toxicity of inorganic arsenic (iAs) is higher than other forms of arsenic, it may produce a more severe straighthead disorder in rice. The use of iAs-rich groundwater for irrigation, and the increase of iAs concentrations in agricultural soil in arsenic epidemic South and South-East Asia may cause a high incidence of straighthead in rice, resulting in a threat to sustainable rice production in this region.

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Acknowledgments

The authors wish to thank the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) and the University of Technology, Sydney (UTS) for financial supports in preparing the review paper. It is also our pleasure to acknowledge anonymous associate editor and reviewer for their constructing comments that improve the quality of the review.

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Correspondence to M. Azizur Rahman.

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Azizur Rahman, M., Mamunur Rahman, M. & Hasegawa, H. Arsenic-Induced Straighthead: An Impending Threat to Sustainable Rice Production in South and South-East Asia!. Bull Environ Contam Toxicol 88, 311–315 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00128-011-0490-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00128-011-0490-x

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