{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,8]],"date-time":"2026-09-08T05:10:50Z","timestamp":1788844250577,"version":"build-2803163510"},"reference-count":41,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"9","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,6]],"date-time":"2026-09-06T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1788652800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100008990","name":"Zhejiang Provincial Department of Science and Technology","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["2023C02018"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2023C02018"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100008990","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/100017710","name":"Zhejiang Provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Affairs","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["2024SNJF077"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2024SNJF077"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100017710","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"award":["2024SNJF077"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2024SNJF077"]}],"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/00p3rhk10","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100002855","name":"Ministry of Science and Technology of the People\u2019s Republic of China","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","award":["2021YFD2000205"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2021YFD2000205"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100002855","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"crossref"}]},{"award":["2021YFD2000205"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2021YFD2000205"]}],"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/027s68j25","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Life"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Rice (Oryza sativa L.) generates approximately 300 million tons of straw annually worldwide, and efficient degradation and valorization remain critical bottlenecks for sustainable agriculture. Straw degradability is fundamentally constrained by cell wall recalcitrance, which is determined by the composition and architecture of cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin, each under genetic regulation. This review proposes a three-parameter analytical framework, including cellulose crystallinity, hemicellulose side-chain modification, and lignin monomer composition and cross-linking density, to systematically assess the regulatory role of endogenous rice genes in straw degradability. We provide a comprehensive synthesis of recent advances in cellulose synthase genes and brittle culm mutants, lignin biosynthesis, cell wall modification genes, and the integration of genetic mapping with molecular breeding strategies. Particular attention is given to the trade-offs between enhanced degradability and agronomic performance, and to emerging strategies, including semi-dominant alleles, tissue-specific promoters, and multi-gene pyramiding, which hold potential for resolving these trade-offs. We conclude by identifying key research gaps and proposing future directions for developing dual-purpose rice cultivars with both high grain yield and superior straw degradability.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/life16091491","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,7]],"date-time":"2026-09-07T08:07:06Z","timestamp":1788768426000},"page":"1491","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Advances in Genes Associated with Straw Degradation in Rice"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"16","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-9003-9667","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Tao","family":"Tong","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"State Key Laboratory for Rice Biology and Breeding, China National Rice Research Institute, Hangzhou 311401, China"},{"name":"Northeast Asia Agricultural Science and Technology Innovation Center, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Baoqing 155600, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Yangyan","family":"Wei","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Zhejiang Shaoxing Shangyu Agricultural Technique Spreading Center, Shaoxing 312300, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Qingxia","family":"Wang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Northeast Asia Agricultural Science and Technology Innovation Center, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Baoqing 155600, China"},{"name":"Research and Development Center of Rice Cropping Technology, China National Rice Research Institute, Hangzhou 311401, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7742-5195","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Fanrong","family":"Zeng","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"MARA Key Laboratory of Sustainable Crop Production in the Middle Reaches of the Yangtze River (Co-Construction by Ministry and Province), College of Agriculture, Yangtze University, Jingzhou 434025, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Yuting","family":"Hu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Northeast Asia Agricultural Science and Technology Innovation Center, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Baoqing 155600, China"},{"name":"MARA Key Laboratory of Sustainable Crop Production in the Middle Reaches of the Yangtze River (Co-Construction by Ministry and Province), College of Agriculture, Yangtze University, Jingzhou 434025, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Shuzhen","family":"Ye","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Northeast Asia Agricultural Science and Technology Innovation Center, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Baoqing 155600, China"},{"name":"Research and Development Center of Rice Cropping Technology, China National Rice Research Institute, Hangzhou 311401, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Zhijuan","family":"Ji","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"State Key Laboratory for Rice Biology and Breeding, China National Rice Research Institute, Hangzhou 311401, China"},{"name":"Research and Development Center of Rice Cropping Technology, China National Rice Research Institute, Hangzhou 311401, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Yanli","family":"Wang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"State Key Laboratory for Quality and Safety of Agro-Products, Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiome of Zhejiang Province, Key Laboratory of Biotechnology in Plant Protection of MARA, Institute of Plant Protection and Microbiology, Zhejiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hangzhou 310021, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Shunan","family":"Zheng","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Rural Energy and Environment Agency, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Beijing 100125, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Younan","family":"Ouyang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Northeast Asia Agricultural Science and Technology Innovation Center, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Baoqing 155600, China"},{"name":"Zhejiang Shaoxing Shangyu Agricultural Technique Spreading Center, Shaoxing 312300, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,6]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"10509","DOI":"10.1007\/s11033-023-08886-4","article-title":"A comprehensive review on genetic modification of plant cell wall for improved saccharification efficiency","volume":"50","author":"Mishra","year":"2023","journal-title":"Mol. 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