Review and Special Topic

Research Progress on the Functions of Rice MAPK Family Genes

  • CHEN Chunxiao ,
  • FU Linli ,
  • ZHANG Wei ,
  • BU Qingyun ,
  • TIAN Xiaojie
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  • 1 Northeast Institute of Geography and Agroecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Harbin 150081, China
    2 University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
    3 College of Advanced Agriculture and Ecological Environment, Heilongjiang University, Harbin 150080, China

Received date: 2025-09-26

  Revised date: 2025-12-01

  Online published: 2026-07-15

Abstract

The mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) cascade pathway is a highly conserved signal transduction module in eukaryotes, playing a central role in plant growth and development, stress responses, and immune defense. As a globally significant food crop and a model monocot plant, rice directly links yield and quality improvements to food security. Recent studies have extensively revealed that genes of the rice MAPK family play crucial roles in grain shape and grain number formation, anther and embryo development, hormone signaling regulation, disease resistance, and adaptation to abiotic stress. This review systematically summarizes the classification and structural characteristics of the rice MAPK family, outlines recent research advances in its roles during growth and development, hormone signaling transduction, disease immunity, and stress responses, and summarizes the key identified MAPK cascade pathways and their regulatory mechanisms. This work provides a reference for further elucidating the rice MAPK signaling network and lays a theoretical foundation for molecular design breeding to enhance rice yield and stress tolerance.

Cite this article

CHEN Chunxiao , FU Linli , ZHANG Wei , BU Qingyun , TIAN Xiaojie . Research Progress on the Functions of Rice MAPK Family Genes[J]. Chinese Journal OF Rice Science, 2026 , 40(4) : 425 -435 . DOI: 10.16819/j.1001-7216.2026.250910

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