Maize (Zea mays L.) growth at low soil P levels is affected both by inherent physiological factors as well as interactions with soil microbes. The objectives of this study were (i) to quantify differences among maize inbred lines for growth at low P and response to mycorrhizal fungi, and (ii) to identify quantitative trait loci (QTL) controlling these traits in a B73 × Mo17 recombinant inbred population. Shoot dry weight and root volume were measured in the greenhouse after 6 wk of growth in a factorial experiment of 28 inbred maize lines using treatments of low vs. high P and mycorrhizal vs. nonmycorrhizal treatments. Shoot dry weight for the low P treatment in the absence of mycorrhizae ranged from 0.56 to 3.15 g. Mycorrhizal responsiveness based on shoot dry weight ranged from 106 to 800%. Shoot dry weight in the low P–nonmycorrhizal treatment was highly negatively correlated with mycorrhizal responsiveness. Plants grown at high P in the presence of mycorrhizae accumulated only 88% of the biomass of plants grown at high P in the absence of mycorrhizae, indicating that mycorrhizae can reduce plant growth when not contributing to the symbiosis. Percentage of root colonization was not correlated with mycorrhizal responsiveness. B73 and Mo17 were among the extremes for growth at low P and mycorrhizal responsiveness, and a B73 × Mo17 population of 197 recombinant inbred lines was used to detect QTL for growth at low P and mycorrhizal responsiveness. Three QTL were identified which controlled growth at low P in the absence of mycorrhizae based on shoot weight and one QTL which controlled mycorrhizal responsiveness. This study indicates that there is substantial variation among maize lines for growth at low P and response to mycorrhizal fungi. This variation could be harnessed to develop cultivars for regions of the world with P deficiency and for reduced‐input production systems.

Just as society has evolved over time, our food system has also evolved over centuries into a global system of immense size and complexity. food needs and those involved in public education and outreach. It is IFT's hope that the reader will gain a better understanding of the goals or purposes for various applications of science and technology in the food system, and an appreciation for the complexity of the modern food supply.Abstract: This Institute of Food Technologists scientific review describes the scientific and technological achievements that made possible the modern production-to-consumption food system capable of feeding nearly 7 billion people, and it also discusses the promising potential of ongoing technological advancements to enhance the food supply even further and to increase the health and wellness of the growing global population. This review begins with a historical perspective that summarizes the parallel developments of agriculture and food technology, from the beginnings of modern society to the present. A section on food manufacturing explains why food is processed and details various food processing methods that ensure food safety and preserve the quality of products. A section about potential solutions to future challenges briefly discusses ways in which scientists, the food industry, and policy makers are striving to improve the food supply for a healthier population and feed the future. Applications of science and technology within the food system have allowed production of foods in adequate quantities to meet the needs of society, as it has evolved. Today, our production-toconsumption food system is complex, and our food is largely safe, tasty, nutritious, abundant, diverse, convenient, and less costly and more readily accessible than ever before. Scientific and technological advancements must be accelerated and applied in developed and developing nations alike, if we are to feed a growing world population.

Core Ideas Extensive natural variation exists for tocochromanols in fresh sweet corn kernels. vte4 controls the levels of α‐tocopherol, which has the highest vitamin E activity. vte1 and hggt1 contribute to the genetic control of tocotrienols. Sweet corn lines possessing sh2 have the highest levels of ς‐ and γ‐tocotrienols. Prediction abilities were highest for tocotrienols relative to tocopherols. Sweet corn (Zea mays L.), a highly consumed fresh vegetable in the United States, varies for tocochromanol (tocopherol and tocotrienol) levels but makes only a limited contribution to daily intake of vitamin E and antioxidants. We performed a genome‐wide association study of six tocochromanol compounds and 14 derivative traits across a sweet corn inbred line association panel to identify genes associated with natural variation for tocochromanols and vitamin E in fresh kernels. Concordant with prior studies in mature maize kernels, an association was detected between γ‐tocopherol methyltransferase (vte4) and α‐tocopherol content, along with tocopherol cyclase (vte1) and homogentisate geranylgeranyltransferase (hggt1) for tocotrienol variation. Additionally, two kernel starch synthesis genes, shrunken2 (sh2) and sugary1 (su1), were associated with tocotrienols, with the strongest evidence for sh2, in combination with fixed, strong vte1 and hggt1 alleles, accounting for the greater amount of tocotrienols in su1sh2 and sh2 lines. In prediction models with genome‐wide markers, predictive abilities were higher for tocotrienols than tocopherols, and these models were superior to those that used marker sets targeting a priori genes involved in the biosynthesis and/or genetic control of tocochromanols. Through this quantitative genetic analysis, we have established a key step for increasing tocochromanols in fresh kernels of sweet corn for human health and nutrition.

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Sweet corn (Zea mays L.) is highly consumed in the United States, but does not make major contributions to the daily intake of carotenoids (provitamin A carotenoids, lutein and zeaxanthin) that would help in the prevention of health complications.A genome-wide association study of seven kernel carotenoids and twelve derivative traits was conducted in a sweet corn inbred line association panel ranging from light to dark yellow in endosperm color to elucidate the genetic basis of carotenoid levels in fresh kernels. In agreement with earlier studies of maize kernels at maturity, we detected an association of β-carotene hydroxylase (crtRB1) with β-carotene concentration and lycopene epsilon cyclase (lcyE) with the ratio of flux between the αand β-carotene branches in the carotenoid biosynthetic pathway. Additionally, we found that 5% or less of the evaluated inbred lines possessing the shrunken2 (sh2) endosperm mutation had the most favorable lycE allele or crtRB1 haplotype for elevating β-branch carotenoids (β-carotene and zeaxanthin) or β-carotene, respectively. Genomic prediction models with genome-wide markers obtained moderately high predictive abilities for the carotenoid traits, especially lutein, and outperformed models with less markers that targeted candidate genes implicated in the synthesis, retention, and/or genetic control of kernel carotenoids. Taken together, our results constitute an important step toward increasing carotenoids in fresh sweet corn kernels.

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Teosinte (Zea mays subsp. parviglumis H. H. Iltis & Doebley) has greater genetic diversity than maize inbreds and landraces (Z. mays subsp. mays). There are, however, limited genetic resources to efficiently evaluate and tap this diversity. To broaden resources for genetic diversity studies in maize, we developed and evaluated 928 near-isogenic introgression lines (NILs) from 10 teosinte accessions in the B73 background. Joint linkage analysis of the 10 introgression populations identified several large-effect quantitative trait loci (QTL) for days to anthesis (DTA), kernel row number (KRN), and 50-kernel weight (Wt50k). Our results confirm prior reports of kernel domestication loci and identify previously uncharacterized QTL with a range of allelic effects enabling future research into the genetic basis of these traits. Additionally, we used a targeted set of NILs to validate the effects of a KRN QTL located on chromosome 2. These introgression populations offer novel tools for QTL discovery and validation as well as a platform for initiating fine mapping.

In maize (Zea mays L.), mutations at the Sugary 1 locus are the genetic bases for maize with specialty uses cultivated throughout the western hemisphere precontact (pre-Columbian). The traditional North American sweet maize is homozygous for a recessive sugary1 (su1) allele. Determining the number of unique alleles among su1 maize races is relevant to the debate in archeology and evolutionary biology over whether independent mutation or migration plays a dominant role in the spread of novel phenotypes. We sequenced su1 from 57 cultivars of su1 maize and determined that fi ve independent mutations have been selected. Three of these fi ve alleles were single base pair changes at highly conserved sites and a fourth was a 1.3-kbp transposon. It will be interesting to note if future study in a variety of disciplines will lead to consensus on the signifi cant role of recurrent mutation in evolution.