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Kernel weight per spike: what contributes to it at the individual QTL level?

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Abstract

Spike length (SL), spikelet number (SPN) per spike, kernel number per spike (KNPS), and thousand-kernel weight (TKW) have strong genetic associations with kernel weight per spike (KWPS) in wheat. To investigate their genetic relationships at the individual quantitative trait locus (QTL) level, both unconditional and conditional QTL mapping for KWPS with respect to SL, SPN, KNPS, and TKW were conducted. Two related F8:9 recombinant inbred line populations, comprising 485 and 229 lines, respectively, were used. The trait phenotypic performances of each population were evaluated in four different environments. Unconditional QTL mapping analysis identified 22 putative additive QTL for KWPS, five of which were stable QTL, and only QKwps-WJ-1B.2 showed significant additive-by-environment interaction effects. In comparison with unconditional QTL mapping analysis, conditional QTL mapping analysis indicated that, at the QTL level, KNPS and TKW contributed more to KWPS than did SL and SPN. Any unconditional QTL for KWPS detected in this study was associated with at least one of its four related traits. The present study will provide assistance in the understanding of the genetic relationships between KWPS and its related traits.

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Abbreviations

KWPS :

Kernel weight per spike

KWPSRTs :

Kernel weight per spike related traits

SL :

Spike length

SPN :

Spikelet number per spike

KNPS :

Kernel number per spike

TKW :

Thousand-kernel weight

WJ :

Recombinant inbred line population derived from the cross between Weimai 8 and Jimai 20

WY :

Recombinant inbred line population derived from the cross between Weimai 8 and Yannong 19

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (30971765). The author thanks Dr. Sishen Li, College of Agronomy, Shandong Agricultural University, Tai’an, China, for kindly providing EST-SSR markers. We are also grateful to Dr. Jun Zhu, Institute of Bioinformatics, College of Agriculture and Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310029, China, for technical assistance.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Crop Biology, Shandong Key Laboratory of Crop Biology, Tai’an Subcenter of National Wheat Improvement Center, College of Agronomy, Shandong Agricultural University, Tai’an, 271018, China

    Fa Cui, Chunhua Zhao, Jun Li, Anming Ding, Xingfeng Li, Yinguang Bao & Honggang Wang

  2. Center for Agricultural Resources Research, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shijiazhuang, 050021, Hebei, China

    Fa Cui, Junming Li & Jun Ji

Authors
  1. Fa Cui
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  2. Chunhua Zhao
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  3. Jun Li
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  4. Anming Ding
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  5. Xingfeng Li
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  6. Yinguang Bao
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  7. Junming Li
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  8. Jun Ji
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  9. Honggang Wang
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Honggang Wang.

Additional information

F. Cui, C. Zhao, J. Li and A. Ding contributed equally to this work.

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Cui, F., Zhao, C., Li, J. et al. Kernel weight per spike: what contributes to it at the individual QTL level?. Mol Breeding 31, 265–278 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11032-012-9786-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11032-012-9786-8

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