The main goal of this project is the identification of the romanian Zea mays lines, that possess the favorable alleles of the crtRB1 and lcyE genes, and their use as donors in order to obtain new hybrids with high concentrations of proVA (provitamin A).
Specific objectives of the project are:
In order to fulfill the purpose of the project, we planned the actions within four specific objectives:
Objective 1: Simultaneous identification of favorable / rare alleles of the lcyE and crtRB1 genes using the multiplex PCR approach.
Objective 2: Sequencing and identifying SNPs or InDels involved in favorable gene alleles that differentiate high and low proVA genotypes.
Objective 3: Determine the content in proVA for the lines identified using the HPLC technique.
Objective 4: Indication of crosses between newly identified maize lines belonging to different heterotic groups (identified on the basis of previous genotyping data) and which will lead to the integration of favorable / rare alleles of the lcyE and crtRB1 genes in new or other hybrids QPM maize lines widely used to obtain a high concentration of proVA.