Abstract:

Fourteen maize (Zea mays L.) inbred lines selected from five basic populations were crossed with 5 elite inbred lines from different heterotic groups, and the 70 combinations according to NCII design were evaluated at three locations in 2005 and 2006. The protein content in kernels was analyzed using the Near Infrared Reflectance Spectroscopy (NIRS) method. Among the female populations, male lines, and their hybrids, significant variances on protein content in kernels were observed. Two basic populations of female parents, “8822” and “M”, had higher levels of protein content than other female populations, and they could essentially promote the protein content of their hybrids when they crossed with elite male parents Pb (Mo17) or Pa (Ye 478). The majority (94.29%) of the genotype variance (V_G) for protein content in kernels was from additive variance (V_A). However, the broad sense heritability and narrow sense heritability were both in low levels, which were 35.83% and 33.94%, respectively. This indicated that the environmental factors had obvious effects on this trait. The grain yield has no significant correlation with protein content in kernels (r = 0.053, P > 0.05). Therefore, it is feasible to promote the maize yield and protein content in kernels simultaneously through pyramiding elite genes.

Key words: Maize, Hybrid, Kernel protein content, Inheritance effect, Yield, Relationship