Identification of anther thermotolerance genes by the integration of linkage and association analysis in maize

• Published in: The Plant journal : for cell and molecular biology Vol. 119; no. 4; pp. 1953 - 1966
• Main Authors: Feng, Yijian, Li, Xinlong, Qin, Yongtian, Li, Yibo, Yang, Zeyuan, Xiong, Xuehang, Wan, Jiong, Qiu, Meng, Hou, Qiuchan, Zhang, Zhanhui, Guo, Zhanyong, Zhang, Xuehai, Niu, Jishan, Zhou, Qingqian, Tang, Jihua, Fu, Zhiyuan
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.08.2024
• Subjects: anther thermotolerance; Association analysis; Corn; Crop production; DUP707; Gene expression; Gene frequency; Gene mapping; Genes; Genetic analysis; high‐temperature stress; Inbreeding; Intervals; Linkage analysis; linkage and association analysis; maize; Plant breeding; Pollen; Quantitative trait loci; Seeds; Temperature tolerance; linkage and association analysis; DUP707; maize; high‐temperature stress; anther thermotolerance
• ISSN: 0960-7412; 1365-313X; 1365-313X
• DOI: 10.1111/tpj.16900

SUMMARY Maize is one of the world's most important staple crops, yet its production is increasingly threatened by the rising frequency of high‐temperature stress (HTS). To investigate the genetic basis of anther thermotolerance under field conditions, we performed linkage and association analysis to identify HTS response quantitative trait loci (QTL) using three recombinant inbred line (RIL) populations and an association panel containing 375 diverse maize inbred lines. These analyses resulted in the identification of 16 co‐located large QTL intervals. Among the 37 candidate genes identified in these QTL intervals, five have rice or Arabidopsis homologs known to influence pollen and filament development. Notably, one of the candidate genes, ZmDUP707, has been subject to selection pressure during breeding. Its expression is suppressed by HTS, leading to pollen abortion and barren seeds. We also identified several additional candidate genes potentially underly QTL previously reported by other researchers. Taken together, our results provide a pool of valuable candidate genes that could be employed by future breeding programs aiming at enhancing maize HTS tolerance. Significance Statement Our research will provide a pool of valuable candidate genes that could be employed by future breeding programs aiming at enhancing maize HTS tolerance.