Shi Mengfei, Jiang Fuyan, Shaw Ranjan K, Ijaz Babar, Sun Jiachen, Fan Xingming
Institute of Food Crops, Yunnan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Kunming, 650205, China.
College of Agronomy and Biotechnology, Yunnan Agricultural University, Kunming, 650201, China.
BMC Genomics. 2025 May 16;26(1):496. doi: 10.1186/s12864-025-11682-y.
Hundred-kernel weight (HKW) is a crucial determinant of maize yield. Understanding the genetic mechanisms underlying HKW is vital for maize breeding programs aimed at enhancing productivity. This study aimed to explore the genetic basis of HKW in maize using a multi-parent population (MPP), developed by crossing the common male parent Ye107 with five female parents representing a range of kernel sizes and weights. The MPP was evaluated under two distinct environmental conditions (19DH and 19BS).
Genotyping-by-sequencing (GBS) identified 591,483 high-quality single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), which were used for a genome-wide association study (GWAS) and linkage analysis. The GWAS revealed 21 SNPs significantly associated with HKW, with Zm00001d028188, a gene involved in cell wall synthesis, emerging as a key candidate located on chromosome 1. This gene, encodes Galacturonosyltransferase 1 (GAUT1) and overlapped with two identified quantitative trait loci (QTLs): qHKW1-2 and qHKW1-3, which were further validated through linkage analysis.
This study identified critical genetic loci and candidate genes, such as Zm00001d028188, involved in regulating HKW in maize. The findings provide valuable genomic resources for maize breeding, potentially contributing to the development of high-yielding maize varieties through an enhanced understanding of the genetic control of HKW.
百粒重是玉米产量的关键决定因素。了解百粒重潜在的遗传机制对于旨在提高产量的玉米育种计划至关重要。本研究旨在利用一个多亲本群体（MPP）探索玉米百粒重的遗传基础，该群体由普通父本掖107与五个代表不同籽粒大小和重量的母本杂交而成。在两种不同环境条件（19DH和19BS）下对该多亲本群体进行了评估。
简化基因组测序（GBS）鉴定出591,483个高质量单核苷酸多态性（SNP），用于全基因组关联研究（GWAS）和连锁分析。GWAS揭示了21个与百粒重显著相关的SNP，位于1号染色体上的参与细胞壁合成的基因Zm00001d028188成为关键候选基因。该基因编码半乳糖醛酸基转移酶1（GAUT1），并与两个已鉴定的数量性状位点（QTL）：qHKW1 - 2和qHKW1 - 3重叠，通过连锁分析进一步验证。
本研究鉴定出了调控玉米百粒重的关键遗传位点和候选基因，如Zm00001d028188。这些发现为玉米育种提供了有价值的基因组资源，通过增强对百粒重遗传控制的理解，可能有助于高产玉米品种的培育。
