Journal Article

Genetic analysis and QTL mapping for pericarp thickness in maize (Zea mays L.)

Jia, Haitao, Zhai, Lihong, Tang, Yunqi, Gong, Guantong, Pei, Hu, Huang, Jun

2024

Overview

Proper pericarp thickness protects the maize kernel against pests and diseases, moreover, thinner pericarp improves the eating quality in fresh corn. In this study, we aimed to investigate the dynamic changes in maize pericarp during kernel development and identified the major quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for maize pericarp thickness. It was observed that maize pericarp thickness first increased and then decreased. During the growth and formation stages, the pericarp thickness gradually increased and reached the maximum, after which it gradually decreased and reached the minimum during maturity. To identify the QTLs for pericarp thickness, a BC 4 F 4 population was constructed using maize inbred lines B73 (recurrent parent with thick pericarp) and Baimaya (donor parent with thin pericarp). In addition, a high-density genetic map was constructed using maize 10 K SNP microarray. A total of 17 QTLs related to pericarp thickness were identified in combination with the phenotypic data. The results revealed that the heritability of the thickness of upper germinal side of pericarp (UG) was 0.63. The major QTL controlling UG was qPT1-1 , which was located on chromosome 1 (212,215,145–212,948,882). The heritability of the thickness of upper abgerminal side of pericarp (UA) was 0.70. The major QTL controlling UA was qPT2-1 , which was located on chromosome 2 (2,550,197–14,732,993). In addition, a combination of functional annotation, DNA sequencing analysis and quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) screened two candidate genes, Zm00001d001964 and Zm00001d002283 , that could potentially control maize pericarp thickness. This study provides valuable insights into the improvement of maize pericarp thickness during breeding.

• Publisher: BioMed Central,BioMed Central Ltd,Springer Nature B.V,BMC
• Subject: Agriculture / Analysis / Annotations / Biomedical and Life Sciences / Cell division / Chromosome 1 / Chromosome 2 / Chromosome Mapping / Chromosomes / Chromosomes, Plant - genetics / Corn / Diseases and pests / DNA / DNA microarrays / DNA sequencing / Eating quality / Gene mapping / Gene sequencing / Genes / Genetic analysis / Genetic aspects / Genotype & phenotype / Growth / Heritability / Inbreeding / Life Sciences / Maize / Nucleotide sequencing / Pericarp / Pericarp thickness / Pests / Phenotype / Plant reproduction / Plant Sciences / Plant-Pathogen Interactions / Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide / QTL mapping / quantitative polymerase chain reaction / Quantitative trait loci / Quantitative Trait Loci - genetics / quantitative traits / seed development / seeds / Seeds - anatomy & histology / Seeds - genetics / Seeds - growth & development / Sequence analysis / single nucleotide polymorphism arrays / Single-nucleotide polymorphism / SNP / Thickness / Tree Biology / Zea mays / Zea mays - anatomy & histology / Zea mays - genetics / Zea mays - growth & development