Molecular Biology and Genetics

Plant Biotechnology

Electronic Journal of Biotechnology ISSN: 0717-3458 Vol. 11 No. 1, Issue of January 15, 2008
© 2007 by Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso -- Chile Received April 3, 2007 / Accepted May 20, 2007
DOI: 10.2225/vol11-issue1-fulltext-2
RESEARCH ARTICLE

Heterozygosity following half-sib recurrent selection in popcorn using isoenzyme markers

Liz Kazmirczak Pereira
Department of Cellular Biology and Genetic
Universidade Estadual de Maringá
Av. Colombo, 5790, CEP 87020 900
Maringá, PR, Brazil
Tel: 55 44 3261 4040
Fax: 55 44 3262 7336
E-mail: pereira@bol.com.br

Carlos Alberto Scapim*
Department of Agronomy
Universidade Estadual de Maringá
Av. Colombo, 5790, CEP 87020 900
Maringá, PR, Brazil
Tel: 55 44 3261 4552
Fax: 55 44 3262 7336
E-mail: cascapim@uem.br

Claudete Aparecida Mangolin
Department of Cellular Biology and Genetic
Universidade Estadual de Maringá
Av. Colombo, 5790, CEP 87020 900
Maringá, PR, Brazil
Tel: 55 44 3261 4040
Fax: 55 44 3262 7336
E-mail: camangolin@uem.br

Maria de Fátima Pires da Silva Machado
Department of Cellular Biology and Genetic
Universidade Estadual de Maringá
Av. Colombo, 5790, CEP 87020 900
Maringá, PR, Brazil
Tel: 55 44 3261 4040
Fax: 55 44 3262 7336
E-mail: mfpsmachado@uem.br

Cleso Antônio Patto Pacheco
National Research Center for Maize and Sorghum
Caixa Postal 152, CEP 35701 970
Sete Lagoas, MG, Brazil
E-mail: cleso@cnpms.embrapa.br

Freddy Mora
Department of Agronomy
Universidade Estadual de Maringá
Av. Colombo, 5790, CEP 87020 900
Maringá, PR, Brazil
Tel: 55 44 3261 4552
Fax: 55 44 3262 7336
E-mail: fmora@universiabrasil.net

*Corresponding author

Financial support: National Counsel of Technological and Scientific Development (CNPq), Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES), and Fundação Araucária - Foundation of the State of Paraná, Brazil.

Keywords: allozymes frequency, genetic distance, selection cycles, Zea mays.

Abbreviations:

MDH: malate dehydrogenase
PAGE: polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis
QTLs: quantitative trait loci

Abstract
Full Text

Isozyme biochemical marker may be useful tool for genomic analysis of maize populations undergoing recurrent selection. Thus, isozymes markers was utilized for assess the changes in the genetic variability and distance in a Brazilian composite population of popcorn following four cycles of recurrent selection for yield. One hundred and ninety-six half-sib families were evaluated from each cycle and the ten highest-yielding families (5.2%) were recombined to produce the next cycle. Isozyme analysis considered 80 seedlings per cycle. Simple linear regression equations were estimated among the allele frequencies in each locus in function of the selection cycles, the genetic distances among the cycles and the average heterozygosity per locus for each cycle. Regression analysis did not reveal any common trend for changes in allele frequencies presumably due to selection. The estimates of the number of polymorphic locus, of the mean of allele per locus and the mean heterozygosity did not reveal any reduction in variability. It was concluded that four selection cycles did not cause relevant changes in the variability or genetic distance among the selection cycles of CMS-43 popcorn population. Isozymes markers analysis showed that the number of recombined half-sib families in recurrent selection was suitable.

Supported by UNESCO / MIRCEN network