Potassium Fertilizer Formulations Modulate Starch Content and Biosynthetic Gene Expression in Potato Tubers

Potassium Fertilizer Formulations Modulate Starch Content and Biosynthetic Gene Expression in Potato Tubers | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Potassium Fertilizer Formulations Modulate Starch Content and Biosynthetic Gene Expression in Potato Tubers Dong Wang, Xinyu Ni, Jing Yang, Zhiping Li, Yan Shi, Chengjian Sui, and 2 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-8763069/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted 4 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract In Inner Mongolia, a major potato-producing region in China, excessive and unbalanced potassium (K) fertilizer application by farmers in pursuit of higher yields compromises tuber quality and environmental sustainability. To establish a rational K fertilization strategy, two-year field trials were conducted using the medium-late maturing cultivar 'Dafeng No. 10'. The experiments evaluated different K rates and blending ratios with polyhalite (POLY4). Key results show that a moderate K reduction (K₂O 200 kg ha⁻¹) combined with a low POLY4 proportion (18.5%, treatments 2T4 and 3T4) did not cause yield loss but instead achieved the highest yield increases (35.6% in 2022, 22.6% in 2023) and significantly enhanced tuber starch content. This was mechanistically supported by the up-regulation of key starch-synthesis enzymes (AGPase, SBE, SSS, GBSS) and their related genes at transcriptional level under the optimal treatments (particularly 2T3, 2T4, 3T4). The study concludes that a tailored K-POLY4 blend, specifically a reduced K rate with 18.5% POLY4, is an optimal strategy for synergistically improving potato yield, starch quality, and potassium use efficiency, providing a theoretical foundation for sustainable intensification of potato production in China. Potassium fertilization Potato Yield Polyhalite Tuber starch content Gene expression Full Text Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted Reviewers agreed at journal 07 Mar, 2026 Reviewers invited by journal 05 Mar, 2026 Editor assigned by journal 04 Feb, 2026 First submitted to journal 01 Feb, 2026 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-8763069","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":601538318,"identity":"e50301f4-cb9c-4357-8cf4-a99567116d08","order_by":0,"name":"Dong 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To establish a rational K fertilization strategy, two-year field trials were conducted using the medium-late maturing cultivar 'Dafeng No. 10'. The experiments evaluated different K rates and blending ratios with polyhalite (POLY4). Key results show that a moderate K reduction (K₂O 200 kg ha⁻\u0026sup1;) combined with a low POLY4 proportion (18.5%, treatments 2T4 and 3T4) did not cause yield loss but instead achieved the highest yield increases (35.6% in 2022, 22.6% in 2023) and significantly enhanced tuber starch content. This was mechanistically supported by the up-regulation of key starch-synthesis enzymes (AGPase, SBE, SSS, GBSS) and their related genes at transcriptional level under the optimal treatments (particularly 2T3, 2T4, 3T4). The study concludes that a tailored K-POLY4 blend, specifically a reduced K rate with 18.5% POLY4, is an optimal strategy for synergistically improving potato yield, starch quality, and potassium use efficiency, providing a theoretical foundation for sustainable intensification of potato production in China.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Potassium Fertilizer Formulations Modulate Starch Content and Biosynthetic Gene Expression in Potato Tubers","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2026-03-11 10:26:03","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-8763069/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"","date":"2026-03-07T07:25:13+00:00","index":0,"fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewersInvited","content":"","date":"2026-03-06T00:58:10+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorAssigned","content":"","date":"2026-02-04T05:49:47+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"submitted","content":"Acta Physiologiae Plantarum","date":"2026-02-02T04:33:04+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"acta-physiologiae-plantarum","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"acpp","sideBox":"Learn more about [Acta Physiologiae Plantarum](http://link.springer.com/journal/11738)","snPcode":"11738","submissionUrl":"https://www.editorialmanager.com/acpp/default2.aspx","title":"Acta Physiologiae Plantarum","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"em","reportingPortfolio":"Springer Hybrid","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"9cf124fd-a710-4f19-946a-a411718ff7f4","owner":[],"postedDate":"March 11th, 2026","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"under-review","subjectAreas":[],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2026-03-11T10:26:04+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2026-03-11 10:26:03","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-8763069","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-8763069","identity":"rs-8763069","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"XKTyCvWXoU3ODBz1xrDgd","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}