Marker‐assisted introgression of lpa2 locus responsible for low‐phytic acid trait into an elite tropical maize inbred (<i><scp>Z</scp>ea mays</i> L.)

Abstract

Abstract Maize is an important food and feed crop worldwide. Phytic acid ( PA ), in maize kernel, is an antinutritional factor. PA chelates mineral cations and causes mineral deficiency in humans and phosphorous deficiency in animals. The undigested PA excreted by monogastric animals causes phosphorous eutrophication. Therefore, development of low‐phytate maize is indispensable. The low‐phytate locus ( lpa2 allele) has been transferred from low‐phytate mutant line ‘ EC 659418’ into an elite inbred UMI 395 through marker‐assisted backcross breeding ( MABB ). The MABB involved three backcrosses followed by two selfing steps, including ‘foreground selection’, that is, selecting lines with lpa2 allele with the help of a codominant SSR marker ‘umc2230’ and ‘background selection’, that is, selecting plants having genetic background similar to that of the recurrent parent using 50 codominant SSR markers. Two low‐phytate lpa2 lines with genome similar (&gt;90% similarity) to that of recurrent parent have been identified. These lines can be used as parent in future hybridization programmes for obtaining low‐phytate high‐yielding maize hybrids.