EMERGENT LIFE SCIENCES RESEARCH - Vol 10, Issue 1, Published on 30, June 2024

Pages: 19-32
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Breeding strategies for quality protein maize: A Review

Author: Kotte Bhargava, P. Bhavana, Raveendra N. Gadag, K. V. Gowtham, N. Hemalatha, G. Anil Kumar, Amaresh

Category: Review Article

Abstract:

Zein proteins in maize seeds regulate food and feed quality and belong to several subfamilies. Most maize prolamin is α-zeins, which are rich in glutamine, leucine, and proline but lacking in critical amino acids (lysine and tryptophan). RNAi experiments show that 22kD zeins downregulate the quality protein maize (QPM) phenotype, not 19kD. The opaque-2 mutation caused a chalky, soft endosperm and many defects. QPM genotypes with opaque-2 alleles and firm kernels were improved. As opaque-2 is recessive and biochemical lysine and tryptophan analysis is costly, conventional backcrossing alone is not very useful. Marker-assisted selection (MAS) allowed top inbreds to be homozygous o2o2 utilizing opaque-2 gene-specific markers. Vivek QPM-9, a mixture of two QPM introgression lines, benefits various clients and customers. This review highlights the breeding strategies for QPM.

Keywords: introgression, marker-assisted selection, opaque-2, quality protein maize

DOI URL: https://doi.org/10.31783/elsr.2024.1011932