An improved genetic model generates high-resolution mapping of QTL for protein quality in maize endosperm

The genetic mapping of polymorphic markers in a cross between two inbred plant lines has proven to be a powerful method for detecting quantitative trait loci (QTL) underlying complex traits. However, existing methods of QTL mapping were developed for disomic inheritance of both marker and QTL loci in a diploid population. To map QTL influencing traits expressed in the endosperm, a triploid embryo-nourishing tissue resulting from double fertilization, existing QTL mapping models require modification to consider the trisomic inheritance of the endosperm and the generation difference between the mapping population and the endosperm. Such a model requires simultaneous use of two successive generations, which theoretically can lead to an increase in resolution for QTL mapping compared with the use of a single backcross or F₂ generation. Using a newly developed model based on these considerations, we demonstrate the improved resolution of QTL, influencing protein quality traits in maize endosperm. The increased resolution made possible with this approach makes identified QTL accessible to positional cloning.