Comparison of testers in the selection of S3 families obtained from the UENF-14 variety of popcorn

Abstract

AbstrAct:The use of topcross has proven to be an interesting option for the maize crop; however, for the popcorn, there is little information about the choice of the appropriate tester. In

Exploring the use of testers to maximize selection accuracy of partially inbred S3 popcorn progenies

“…Unsurprisingly, the results we obtained by using the BLUP procedure are clearer than those obtained by Lima et al (2016) in an evaluation of the same testers in Campos dos Goytacazes using only the conventional statistical analysis methodology based on the Fasoulas index (1983). As also, the results of the present study are clearer than those obtained by Pena et al (2016), who only used the Fasoulas index (1983) to evaluate the same testers in the environment of Itaocara. Consequently, estimating the genotypic effects of testers by BLUP is a promising method to use to identify testers that best meet the requirement of good testers, optimize the efficiency of the discrimination of genotypes for selection purposes, are easy to manipulate, allow for the better classification of the relative merits of different lines, and maximize the genetic gain achieved through hybrid breeding (Hallauer & Lopes Perez, 1979).…”

“…If this allelic condition is met, the full combining potential of the tested lines can then be detected. These results were corroborated by several studies that evaluated the topcross methodology (Marcondes et al, 2016;Lima et al, 2016;Pena et al, 2016). On the other hand, for commercial hybrid production, testers with a high frequency of favorable alleles can identify the best crosses, since hybrids with high heterosis can be obtained with this approach (Lima et al, 2016;Pena et al, 2016).…”

“…However, lines can be selected directly based their 'per se' value due to the predominance of additive genetic effects on the PE trait (Amaral Júnior et al, 2013). However, it should be noted that tester UENF 14 is the population from which the S 3 progenies were derived, and the short genetic distance (Lima et al, 2016;Pena et al, 2016) between this tester and the progenies may have interfered with the estimation of genotypic effects by BLUP. Thus, it was concluded that tester IAC 125 is the most suitable for use in the discrimination of partially endogenous progenies in both studied environments.…”