title: Distinct genetic architectures for male and female inflorescence traits of maize.
abstract: We compared the genetic architecture of thirteen maize morphological traits in a large population of recombinant inbred lines. Four traits from the male inflorescence (tassel) and three traits from the female inflorescence (ear) were measured and studied using linkage and genome-wide association analyses and compared to three flowering and three leaf traits previously studied in the same population. Inflorescence loci have larger effects than flowering and leaf loci, and ear effects are larger than tassel effects. Ear trait models also have lower predictive ability than tassel, flowering, or leaf trait models. Pleiotropic loci were identified that control elongation of ear and tassel, consistent with their common developmental origin. For these pleiotropic loci, the ear effects are larger than tassel effects even though the same causal polymorphisms are likely involved. This implies that the observed differences in genetic architecture are not due to distinct features of the underlying polymorphisms. Our results support the hypothesis that genetic architecture is a function of trait stability over evolutionary time, since the traits that changed most during the relatively recent domestication of maize have the largest effects.
authors: Institute for Genomic Diversity, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, USA. pjb34@illinois.edu
authors: Patrick J
authors: PJ
authors: Brown
authors: Narasimham
authors: N
authors: Upadyayula
authors: Gregory S
authors: GS
authors: Mahone
authors: Feng
authors: F
authors: Tian
authors: Peter J
authors: PJ
authors: Bradbury
authors: Sean
authors: S
authors: Myles
authors: James B
authors: JB
authors: Holland
authors: Sherry
authors: S
authors: Flint-Garcia
authors: Michael D
authors: MD
authors: McMullen
authors: Edward S
authors: ES
authors: Buckler
authors: Torbert R
authors: TR
authors: Rocheford
mesh_terms: D005075:Biological Evolution; D002874:Chromosome Mapping; D003433:Crosses, Genetic; D035264:Flowers / Q000235:genetics*; D008040:Genetic Linkage; D058685:Genetic Pleiotropy; D055106:Genome-Wide Association Study; D056626:Inflorescence / Q000235:genetics*; D010641:Phenotype; D018515:Plant Leaves / Q000235:genetics*; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; D040641:Quantitative Trait Loci / Q000235:genetics*; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D003313:Zea mays / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000235:genetics*