Rice cultivation represents a critical component of global agriculture, acting as the primary food source for approximately 4 billion people worldwide. In the face of growing environmental fluctuations and challenges such as soil salinity, drought, temperature extremes, and biotic stresses, there is an urgent need to develop rice varieties that not only yield optimally but also endure stressful conditions. The identification of stress-tolerance genes, particularly from wild relatives, offers an opportunity to expand the genetic pool and enhance both the resilience and productivity of cultivated rice. This pursuit is aligned with utilizing innovated rice germplasm, which provides a foundation for advancing breeding strategies and elucidating the underlying mechanisms that enable rice to withstand diverse environmental pressures.

Despite rapid advancements in sequencing technologies, the field of rice genetics and breeding has not kept pace with the explosion of genomic big data. To bridge this gap, there is an essential need to focus on identifying novel genes and innovating elite rice germplasm, ultimately leading to the development of superior rice varieties. Doing so will propel the fundamental research of genomic-based plant molecular biology, allowing us to fully exploit genomic insights to improve rice yield and stress resilience. Improved coordination between genomics and breeding can accelerate the deployment of enhanced varieties, addressing both current and future agricultural demands.

This Research Topic aims to foster knowledge exchange across various domains of rice genetics, genomics, and elite germplasm innovation. We encourage contributions that delve into novel gene functions, genetic or physiological mechanisms that underlie stress tolerance and yield improvements in rice, and innovative breeding techniques. To gather further insights into enhancing rice cultivation and yield improvement, we welcome articles addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:

• Identification and functional characterization of stress-tolerance genes
• Innovations in rice breeding techniques for better resilience
• Genetic and physiological mechanisms underlying rice yield improvement
• Integration of genomic data into practical breeding applications
• Development and use of wild relatives in rice breeding strategies

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

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Enhancing Rice Genetics and Resilient Breeding for Improved Yields