Production and identification of doubled haploids in tropical maize.
The production of maize doubled haploid (DH) lines is a technique commonly used by private companies, but not by Brazilian public institutions. Research on this technique is essential to develop and improve the production of DH lines grown under tropical conditions. We assessed the ability of a gynogenetic haploid inducer system to induce haploids in a tropical environment, assessed the induction rate of haploids identified using the R-navajo morphological marker, checked for interference from the generation of hybrid donors on haploid induction, measured the ability of flow cytometry, and simple sequence repeat marker techniques to identify doubled haploids. Seeds from the inducer Krasnodar Embryo Marker Synthetic (KEMS) line were sown in Ponta Grossa, PR, and Cravinhos, SP, and the plants were crossed to produce six hybrids and their F2 generations. The seeds were separated according to the R-navajo morphological marker indicator of haploidy (purple endosperm and white embryo) and germinated in a controlled environment. Chromosomal duplication was performed in seedlings selected as putative haploids. We performed subsequent confirmation of ploidy and the success of duplication using flow cytometry and SSR marker techniques. We concluded that DH lines can be obtained from hybrids crossed with the inducer KEMS line. The generation of inbred hybrids did not affect the induction rate or chromosomal duplication in haploids. The use of flow cytometry and SSR markers was effective in verifying chromosomal duplication in haploids.
Inducer line generated double haploid seeds for combined waxy and opaque 2 grain quality in subtropical maize (Zea mays. L.)
The implementation of modern inducer lines in maize breeding can substantially decrease the time required to create elite inbred lines. In industrialized countries, this method has already largely replaced conventional backcross methods. However, the application of in vivo gynogenesis for inducing doubled haploids is still limited to European and US maize germplasms and has still to be adapted for exotic plant material. The reliability of three modern European inducer lines from the University of Hohenheim (Germany) was investigated for the production of haploid progenies from subtropical specialty maize. Three Chinese hybrids heterozygous for waxy maize and opaque 2 were used as maternal donor material, as maize double recessive for waxy and opaque 2 may improve the nutrition of ethnic minorities in Southeast Asia. However, many false positives were detected by flow cytometry among putative haploid seeds based on anthocyanin pigmentation because the color expression was inhibited in almost 50% of the induced seeds from this maternal plant material. Based on flow cytometry, the haploid induction rates were high with 10.2–12.3%, and the chromosome doubling rates were around 50%; therefore the principal potential of producing DH was confirmed for subtropical maize. However inducer lines for the precise and fast recognition of truly induced haploid seeds still need to be developed.
Genetic structure and diversity of European flint maize populations determined with SSR analyses of individuals and bulks
Landraces of maize represent a valuable genetic resource for breeding and genetic studies. Using simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers, we analysed five flint maize populations from Central Europe that had played an important role in the pre-hybrid era in Germany. Our objectives were to (1) investigate the molecular genetic diversity within and among the populations based on the SSR analysis of individuals, (2) compare these results of the SSR analysis based on individuals with those based on bulks, (3) examine genotype frequencies for deviations from Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium (HWE) at individual loci, and (4) test for linkage disequilibrium (LD) between pairs of loci within populations. Thirty individuals and their bulked DNA per population were fingerprinted with 55 SSR markers. Across all populations, 46.7% of the SSR markers deviated significantly from HWE, with an excess of homozygosity in 97% of the cases. This excess of homozygosity can largely be explained by experimental errors during the amplification of SSRs apart from genuine genetic causes. Allele frequencies of the SSR analyses of individuals and bulks were significantly correlated (r=0.85, P< 0.01), suggesting that SSR analysis of bulks is very cost-effective for large-scale molecular characterisation of germplasm collections. No evidence for genome-wide LD among pairs of loci was observed, indicating that the populations are well suited for high resolution association mapping studies.