Work

Improving cooking and eating quality of Xieyou57, an elite indica hybrid rice, by marker-assisted selection of the Wx locus

Year: 2011

Type: article

Abstract: Xieyou 57, an elite hybrid rice with high grain yield and broad eco-adaptability, is widely planted in China. Its cooking and eating quality, however, is unsatisfactory due to high-amylose content (AC). In this research, a molecular marker-assisted selection method was used to breed for low-amylose content through the modification of the Wx genes in both parents of Xieyou 57. The quality of the parent and hybrid lines were then compared before and after modification. Amylose content of GT-type hybrids derived from crosses of Xieqingzao A(GG) × 057(TT) or Xieqingzao A(TT) × 057(GG), was reduced to about 19% from about 26% in the original hybrid Xieqingzao A(GG) × 057(GG). Wide variation in amylose contents, however, was observed in these GT-type hybrids. With further improvements in both parental lines, the TT type hybrid of Xieqingzao A(TT) × 057(TT) contained even lower amylose (12.5%) with good uniformity and exhibited much better cooking and eating quality than the original hybrid of Xieqingzao A(GG) × 057(GG). Meanwhile, yield potential was also improved by increasing panicle size and grain number of the male sterile line. These results demonstrated the success in significantly improving the cooking and eating quality of hybrid rice while maintaining the good agronomical attributes of the parent lines by using molecular marker-assisted breeding in combination with conventional agronomical selection.

Source: Euphytica

DOI: 10.1007/s10681-011-0377-2