A differentially methylated region of the ZmCCT10 promoter affects flowering time in hybrid maize

• DOI: 10.1016/j.cj.2023.05.006
• Publication Date: 2023-06-29T16:30:34Z
• Authors: Zhiqiang Zhou; Xin Lu; Chaoshu Zhang; Mingshun Li; Zhuanfang Hao; Degui Zhang; Hongjun Yong; Jienan Han; Xinhai Li; Jianfeng Weng
• Keywords: 0301 basic medicine; 0303 health sciences; Flowering time; Hybrid performance; QTL; S; Agriculture (General); Epigenetic; Agriculture; Maize; S1-972

Flowering time (FT) is a key maize domestication trait, variation in which allows maize to grow in a wide range of latitudes. Although previous studies have investigated the genetic control of FT-related traits per se, few studies of FT hybrid performance have been published. We characterized the genomic architecture associated with hybrid performance for FT in a hybrid panel by testcrossing Chang 7–2 with 328 Ye478 × Qi319 recombinant inbred lines (RILs). We identified 11 quantitative trait loci (QTL) for hybrid performance in FT-related traits, including a major QTL qFH10 that controls hybrid performance and heterosis in a summer maize-growing region. However, this locus acts in regulating FT traits per se only in a spring maize-growing region. We validated ZmCCT10 as a candidate gene for qFH10 and found that differences between hybrids and their parental lines in DNA methylation in the differentially methylated region (DMR, –700 to –1520) of the ZmCCT10 promoter affected gene expression pattern and thereby FT in the summer maize-growing region.