Carotenoids are a class of fat-soluble antioxidant vitamin compounds that provide health benefits to animals and humans. Four carotenoid compounds are predominant in maize grain: a- carotene, a-cryptoxanthin, zeaxanthin and lutein. The present study pertains to an analysis of 24 maize inbred lines out of an association mapping panel for nucleotide diversity in the Yellow1 (Y1) gene which regulates an important step in carotenoid biosynthesis in maize kernels. The 5 untranslated region (UTR) of the Y1 gene was specifically targeted for study since an earlier analysis had revealed that most of the variation associated with this gene is likely due to cis-acting regulatory sequences. Three gene-specific primer pairs for PCR were designed using PRIMER3 software based on the gene sequence available in the public domain. The PCR products were purified and quantified prior to DNA sequencing. Sequence ambiguities, if any, were resolved by repeated sequencing (at least three replicates) from both ends. All the sequences were analyzed using different programs of Bioedit software, leading to identification of several SNPs and indels. A total of 15 sequence variations have been found in the present study with a frequency of 1 SNP per 87 bp. Haplotyping and intensive phenotyping of the selected inbred lines is in progress for identification of favorable allelic variants for carotenoid biosynthesis in maize.

Genetic Resources Program|Global Maize Program

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INT1617|INT3057