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Genetic Variation for Nitrogen Remobilization and Postsilking Nitrogen Uptake in Maize Recombinant Inbred Lines: Heritabilities and Correlations among Traits
Author(s) -
Coque M.,
Gallais A.
Publication year - 2007
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/cropsci2007.02.0096
Subject(s) - biology , nitrogen , stover , genetic variation , population , poaceae , agronomy , heritability , genetic variability , inbred strain , grain yield , zoology , botany , field experiment , chemistry , gene , genotype , biochemistry , genetics , demography , organic chemistry , sociology
In maize ( Zea mays L.), grain protein yield is the result of two nitrogen fluxes: N remobilization from stover to the kernels and N allocation to kernels from postsilking N uptake. Nitrogen‐15 labeling was used to study these two fluxes. Genetic variation for N remobilization and postsilking N uptake was studied in testcrosses derived from a population of recombinant inbred lines. On average, from a 2‐yr experiment, 28.3% of whole‐plant N was taken up after silking, and 93% of this postsilking N uptake was allocated to kernels. Nitrogen remobilization represented around 61% of total grain N. However, there was greater variation for postsilking N uptake than for N remobilization. Consequently, N grain yield was more highly correlated with the amount of postsilking N uptake than with the amount of N remobilization. The amount of N remobilization was significantly correlated with both the whole‐plant N amount present at silking and the proportion of N remobilized, whereas N from N uptake within kernels was only correlated to the postsilking N uptake. Variation for the proportion of postsilking N uptake allocated to kernels was low in comparison to that of postsilking N uptake. There was a negative correlation between the amount of N remobilization and the amount of postsilking N uptake, which appears to have a physiological basis. Finally, use of 15 N labeling provided a better description of variation for N accumulation in kernels than the classical balance method.