Development of a Core Subset of Chilean Maize (Zea mays L.) Populations by Near Infrared Transmittance Spectroscopy

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Holly Lang.
Dr. Mark Campbell, Faculty Mentor.

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Plant-genetic resources, currently maintained by the U.S. National Plant Germplasm System, are an important source of genes for improving yield, pest resistance and grain quality. Since collections are often large, core subsets are used when screening for traits in order to minimize redundancy. Core subsets have previously been developed by multivariate analysis of morphological data. Our objective has been to develop a core subset of maize germplasm based on analysis of near infrared spectra of grain so that the subset will display a maximum amount of diversity with regard to grain composition. Using near-infrared spectra of 309 Chilean maize accessions, we have attempted to identify distinct groupings. Comparisons of averaged spectra across the 19 racial groups revealed several distinct differences. For example the average spectra from the race Curangua exhibited a large difference in spectral pattern and level of transmission compared to the race Ocho Corridas. In addition, clusters analysis revealed that several clusters corresponded to racial classification, region of collection and grain texture category. Results from this study suggest that near infrared data can successfully be used to establish core subset for screening plant germplasm.