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Serological Predictions of Genetic Relationships Among Oat Varieties ( Avena sativa L.) and Corn Inbreds ( Zea mays L.) 1
Author(s) -
Kleese R. A.,
Frey K. J.
Publication year - 1964
Publication title -
crop science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.76
H-Index - 147
eISSN - 1435-0653
pISSN - 0011-183X
DOI - 10.2135/cropsci1964.0011183x000400040014x
Subject(s) - avena , agricultural experiment station , biology , crop , zea mays , library science , plant breeding , agronomy , agriculture , computer science , ecology
T HE foremost problem in a plant breeding program using hybridization is predicting the most desirable crosses. At present, the only means of solving this problem is to make a series of crosses; in the case of small grains, to study the magnitude of variability in each cross for one or more segregating generations, and for corn, to assess the relative vigor of the single crosses. Any method for efficiently predicting such information before making the crosses would (a) save time and financial resources spent assaying worthless crosses, (b) allow more rapid utilization of desirable crosses, and (c) permit the assaying of more germplasm. In general, the magnitude of segregation in small grain crosses and vigor in corn single crosses is directly related to the degree of genetic diversity of the parents. Predicting parental genetic diversity by direct chemical analysis of the genetic material, deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), is not possible at present, and even if it were, the information might be of little practical value because of the complex interaction and pleiotropic effects of genes expressed in quantitative characters. However, because of the unique and proximate sequence of reactions leading from DNA to protein synthesis, a crude index of the genetic information carried by a particular genotype should exist in the protein complex produced by the genotype. Serological techniques based upon the identification of individual proteins have been used sporadically in plant systematics for about 60 years. Perhaps the serological techniques used for intra-family or intra-generic differentiation in plant systematics, if refined, could distinguish between genotypes within a species. If succegsful this would provide a technique or "tool" for estimating the genetic relationship between varieties of small grains or inbreds of corn; thus making it possible to predict the most desirable Crosses. The specific objectives of this study were to predict, with serological techniques, the degree of genetic relationship among 7 oat varieties and among 4 corn inbreds, and to correlate the predicted relationships with indices of variability and vigor for agronomic haracters in the oat and corn crosses, respectively.