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CROP BREEDING & GENETICS

Maize Populations as Sources of Favorable Alleles to Improve Cold-Tolerant Hybrids

Misión Biológica de Galicia, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Apartado 28, E-36080 Pontevedra, Spain. Research was supported by the National Plan for Research and Development of Spain (AGF01-3946 and AGF2004-06776), the Autonomous Government of Galicia (PGIDIT04RAG403006PR and PGIDIT02PXIC40301PN), and Excma. Diputación Provincial de Pontevedra. V.M. Rodríguez acknowledges a fellowship from the Ministry of Science and Technology from Spain

^* Corresponding author (previlla{at}mbg.cesga.es).

Low spring temperatures are one of the main limiting factors for maize (Zea mays L.) growth along the European Atlantic coast. Several breeding programs have been performed to obtain cold-tolerant maize genotypes, but the few cold-tolerant inbreds and hybrids available need further improvements for cold tolerance and agronomic performance. The objective of this study was to identify cold-tolerant maize populations with favorable alleles to improve cold tolerance and agronomic performance in early sowing of two cold-tolerant hybrids. The parental inbred lines of two cold-tolerant hybrids were crossed to nine cold-tolerant populations. Tests were performed in a cold chamber and in the field for 2 yr at two locations. The populations Rojo de Tolosa and Puenteareas were the most promising sources of new favorable alleles for transferring cold tolerance to the hybrids EP80 x F7 and EP80 x Z78007, respectively. The populations Puenteareas and Silver King were the most outstanding donors to improve the agronomic performance of EP80 x F7 and EP80 x Z78007, respectively. Some improved versions of the cold-tolerant inbred parents could be developed from crosses between F7 or Z78007 and Puenteareas; alternatively, Rojo de Tolosa or Silver King could be used as donors of favorable alleles, but the simultaneous improvement of yield and cold tolerance is not straightforward.

Abbreviations: lp_lµ', relative number of loci containing favorable alleles in a population and absent in a hybrid • NI, net improvement • PNG_ceg, probability of a net gain of favorable alleles when partial dominance or complementary epistasis is prevalent