Ecology, Environment and Conservation Paper

DIVERSITY ANALYSIS OF MAIZE INBRED LINES ON THE BASIS OF MORPHOLOGICAL AND SIMPLE SEQUENCE REPEAT MARKERS

Rishav Kumar, Tirthartha Chattopadhyay, Lajja Vati, Shyam Sundar Mandal and Smriti

Abstract

A set of trial consisting of 13 inbred lines of maize were grown in the field and morphological diversity was found. Based on the morphological data a cluster diagram based on Wards minimum distance was obtained consisting of a total of four clusters. Apart from that genetic diversity was also found based on the SSR marker using 22 SSR primers with average PIC value 0.304. Based on the molecular cluster diagram a total of 5 clusters were obtained. The result showed that cluster diagram based on morphological data was contrasting with the molecular data. Probably, this could be due to large genome size in cross pollinated crop like maize. Nevertheless, the DNA fingerprinting, obtained in the present study using the 22 SSR primers can be used as platform for assessing inbred purity in maize lines. At the same time, the purity of a hybrid seed lot may also be assessed through these genetic markers, on the basis of their polymorphic and co-dominant nature. The results of the present study could be a valuable source of information for future maize breeding which could be established based on diversity at genetic level and from the pedigree information available for each of the inbred.