QTL for Yield, Earliness, and Cell Wall Quality Traits in Topcross Experiments of the F838 × F286 Early Maize RIL Progeny

Abstract

QTL for cell wall digestibility related traits were investigated in maize (Zea mays L.) topcross experiments of 240 RILs obtained from the F838 × F286 early maize hybrid. Genotype effects were highly significant for all agronomic and cell wall related traits and much higher than genotype × environment (GE) interaction effects for cell wall digestibility traits. Eight quantitative trait loci (QTL) for dry matter (DM) yield were observed, out of which only one increasing allele originated from F286. Conversely, three QTL out of four with alleles increasing DM content at silage harvest stage originated from the earliest F286 line. Out of four QTL increasing starch content, two QTL, which originated from F838, did not colocalize with silking date QTL or any other investigated traits. Ten QTL were observed for lignin content and between six and nine QTL were observed for each of the three cell wall digestibility investigated traits. QTL located in bins 1.02 (position 76–80 cM), 1.07 (position 228–230 cM), and 8.07 (position 134–142 cM) are likely of priority interest when it comes to improving maize cell wall digestibility. Candidate genes underlying cell wall digestibility QTL were searched for on the basis of in silico investigations and with maize, Arabidopsis, poplar, and eucalyptus genomic information. In most of QTL positions, transcription factors regulating cell wall lignification were shown to be the currently most plausible candidates involved in genetic variation of maize cell wall digestibility.

Linkage Disequilibrium with Linkage Analysis of Multiline Crosses Reveals Different Multiallelic QTL for Hybrid Performance in the Flint and Dent Heterotic Groups of Maize

“…For DMC, we detected in total 27 QTL with the separate analyses and 18 with the joint analysis. Only few studies address QTL detection for biomass yield and dry matter content, mainly in biparental populations (e.g., Lübberstedt et al 1998;Méchin et al 2001;Barriere et al 2010;Barriere et al 2012). They reported only limited number of QTL and are not easily comparable with our results.…”

High-Throughput Phenotyping and QTL Mapping Reveals the Genetic Architecture of Maize Plant Growth

“…Furthermore, for the biomass, significant loci detected here did not overlap with other studies (Barrière et al, 2010;Riedelsheimer et al, 2012;Rincent et al, 2014;Muraya et al, 2017), and only one QTL located in the hotspot on chromosome 7 coincided with the fresh shoot biomass and metabolite QTL identified previously (Wen et al, 2015). Cloning this QTL hotspot should help to explain an underlying mechanism of plant growth and metabolic regulation.…”

Genetic Determinants for Enzymatic Digestion of Lignocellulosic Biomass Are Independent of Those for Lignin Abundance in a Maize Recombinant Inbred Population

“…In contrast, all but one of our QTL for saccharification yield (QTL3) map to at least one of the chromosomal regions associated with proxies of lignin abundance identified in other studies of maize, such as Klason lignin determination (total insoluble lignin) and artificial ruminant digestibility assays (Supplemental Table S6; Barrière et al, 2010;Lorenz et al, 2010;Lorenzana et al, 2010;Thomas et al, 2010;Truntzler et al, 2010). Saccharification yields vary in untreated materials but to a much lesser extent following pretreatments (Mosier et al, 2005).…”