Molecular Markers and Grouping of Parents in Maize Breeding Programs

In maize (Zea mays L.) breeding programs identifying potentially high yielding hybrids, assigning new inbreds to heterotic groups, and determining the parental line in a hybrid to which a potential donor line is most closely related, are significant problems. Data from a diallel cross among 14 maize inbreds were analyzed to evaluate use of molecular marker date to (i) predict yield potential of hybrids, (ii) assign inbreds to heterotic groups, and (iii) determine to which of the two inbred parents of a single cross a donor line is most closely related (...)