Can we improve heterosis for root growth of maize by selecting parental inbred lines with different temperature behaviour?

Tolerance to high and low temperature is an important breeding aim for Central and Northern Europe, where temperature fluctuations are predicted to increase. However, the extent to which genotypes differ in their response to the whole range of possible temperatures is not well understood. We tested the hypothesis that the combination of maize (Zea mays L.) inbred lines with differing temperature optima for root growth would lead to superior hybrids. This hypothesis is based on the concept of 'marginal overdominance' in which the hybrid expresses higher relative fitness than its parents, summed over all situations. The elongation rates of axile and lateral roots of the reciprocal cross between two flint and two dent inbred lines were assessed at temperatures between 15°C and 40°C. Indeed, the cross between UH005 and UH250 with lateral root growth temperature optima at 34°C and 28°C, respectively, resulted in intermediate hybrids. At temperatures below and above 31°C, the hybrids' root growth was comparable to the better parent, respectively, thereby increasing temperature tolerance of the hybrid compared with its parents. The implications of and reasons for this heterosis effect are discussed in the context of breeding for abiotic stress tolerance and of putatively underlying molecular mechanisms. This finding paves the way for more detailed investigations of this phenomenon in future studies.