Molecular characterization of endosperm and amino acids modifications among quality protein maize inbreds

Abstract

AbstractModifier loci in QPM play a vital role in achieving acceptable degree of kernel hardness and accumulation of lysine and tryptophan. This study was undertaken to characterize a set of diverse QPM inbreds using SSRs linked to endosperm and amino acids modifier loci for their effective utilization in the breeding programme. Significant variation was observed for endosperm modification (25–100% opaqueness), tryptophan (0.056–0.111%) and lysine (0.223–0.444%). Generally, inbreds with soft endosperm possessed more tryptophan and lysine than inbreds with higher vitreousness. SSRs generated 341 alleles with two to seven alleles per locus. The frequency of unique and rare alleles was more for amino acid modifications, compared to endosperm modifications. Phylogenetic analyses grouped the inbreds into three major clusters, and the study identified suitable crosses for accumulation of endosperm and amino acids modifiers. QPM inbreds with desirable modifications identified here would serve as suitable donor for both opaque2 and modifier loci in the marker‐assisted backcross breeding. Further, contrasting inbreds can be used for generating mapping populations to identify new modifier loci underlying both endosperm and amino acids modifications.