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The utility of near‐infrared transmission spectroscopy (NITS) for the nondestructive prediction of oil content in single maize kernels was explored. Calibration models were developed from spectral information gathered between 850 and 1050 nm. Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy was employed as a reference method to determine the actual oil content of samples used for calibration development and testing. Various positionings of the kernels in the light path and calibration math treatments were explored. The best NITS calibration yielded a 1.2% standard error of cross validation, which was over four times the standard error of NMR reproducibility. Although not as accurate as NMR, NITS does have utility in selecting kernels with the highest oil content from a segregating population.

Methionine is an essential amino acid critical to human, livestock, and poultry nutrition. A microbiological method has been tested for use as a rapid, inexpensive, and reliable means of screening maize (Zea mays L.) and soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] seed for methionine concentration. Maize and soybean meal samples with various methionine contents were defatted before enzymatic proteolysis. An aliquot of each hydrolyzate was added to liquid media free of methionine, autoclaved, and inoculated with a bacteria auxotrophic for methionine. After incubation for 20 h, the turbidity of the cultures was measured and methionine concentration was calculated from standard curve data. Significant positive correlation (r = 0.74 maize; r = 0.88 soybean) was found between the microbiological and chemical determinations. These results demonstrate that the less expensive microbiological procedure would have great utility in a methionine enhancement plant breeding program.

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