17th Annual Student Research Conference
Science
Development and Evaluation of a Core Subset of Chilean Maize Populations by Near-Infrared Transmittance Spectroscopy
Christopher S. Conatser* and Ejikemenwa I. Anih
Dr. Mark Campbell, Faculty Mentor
Gene banks are important sources of genetic variation for improving crop traits. Since collections are often large, smaller, more manageable core subsets--typically selected through multivariate statistical analysis of morphological data to eliminate redundant accessions--are often evaluated for desirable traits. The researchers developed two core subsets out of 309 Chilean maize accessions based, instead, on near-infrared spectra and starch gelatinization values collected from grain samples. They then determined whether these core subsets displayed a relatively greater amount of diversity than randomly chosen subsets. A core subset of 15 samples was established using near-infrared spectra. Variation was greater within the core subset for oil percentage (core S = 0.93%, random S = 0.61%) and one-hundred-kernel weight (core S = 6.92 g, random S = 5.6 g) than random sets of similar size. However, a core subset based on starch gelatinization values showed no significantly greater variation than random sets.
Keywords: Corn, Chile, Near-infrared, DSC, starch
Topic(s):Agricultural Science
Presentation Type: Oral Paper
Session: 36-4
Location: VH 1432
Time: 3:00