Grain yield and its component traits are essential targets in maize breeding. These traits are genetically complex and controlled by a large number of quantitative trait loci (QTL). The aim of this study was to compile reported QTL and major genes for grain yield and its component traits in a QTL atlas, as a valuable resource for the maize community. To this end, 1,177 QTL related to maize yield were collected from 56 studies published between 1992 and 2018. These QTL were projected to genetic map “IBM2 2008 Neighbors”, which led to the identification of 135 meta‐QTL. Some genomic regions appear to be hotspots for yield‐related meta‐QTL, often affecting more than one of the investigated traits. Moreover, we catalogued 20 major maize loci associated with yield and identified 65 maize homologs of 21 rice yield‐related genes. Interestingly, we found that a significant proportion of them are located in meta‐QTL regions. Collectively, this study provides a reference for QTL fine‐mapping and gene cloning, as well as for molecular marker‐assisted breeding of yield‐related traits in maize.

中文翻译：

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玉米（Zea mays）谷物产量及其组成性状的QTL图谱

谷物产量及其组成特征是玉米育种的基本目标。这些性状在遗传上是复杂的，并由大量的数量性状基因座（QTL）控制。这项研究的目的是在QTL地图集中汇编已报告的QTL和主要基因，以了解谷物产量及其组成特征，作为玉米社区的宝贵资源。为此，从1992年至2018年间发表的56篇研究中，收集了1177个与玉米产量相关的QTL。这些QTL计划用于遗传图谱“ IBM2 2008 Neighbors”，从而鉴定了135个meta-QTL。一些基因组区域似乎是与产量相关的meta-QTL的热点，通常会影响多个调查的性状。此外，我们对与产量相关的20个主要玉米基因座进行了分类，并鉴定了21个水稻产量相关基因的65个玉米同源物。有趣的是 我们发现其中很大一部分位于meta-QTL地区。这项研究为玉米的QTL精细定位和基因克隆，以及与玉米产量相关性状的分子标记辅助育种提供了参考。