Quantitative trait loci for grain-quality traits across a rice F2 population and backcross inbred lines

Improving grain-quality is an important goal in rice breeding programs. One vital step is to find major quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for quality related traits and then investigate the relationships among them. We crossed ‘N22’, an indica variety with good appearance but low grain weight, to a japonica variety, ‘Nanjing35’, with superior grain yield but poor appearance. This enabled us to construct an F₂ population and a set of backcross inbred lines (BILs) for QTL-mapping for the traits related grain appearance. In all, 37 QTLs were identified for grain length (GL), grain width (GW), grain thickness (GT), thousand-grain weight (TGW), and the percentage of grains with chalkiness (PGWC). Of these, 17 QTLs detected from 184 plants in the F₂ population explained 4.97–27.26 % of the phenotypic variance, another 20 QTLs were identified using BILs from 2009 to 2010. Quantitative trait loci for major effects were detected in different populations and across years. A new QTL hot spot (marker interval RM504–RM520) was found on Chromosome 3, which harbored QTLs for GL, GW, GT, and TGW. Among our five examined traits, grain shape was significantly correlated with TGW and PGWC. The PGWC values of two heavier grains BILs, L93, and L145 are much lower than Nanjiing35, the analysis of genotype showed that this greater weight may due to the locus for GL occurring within RM504–RM520 on Chromosome 3. Therefore, those two lines will allow us to develop a long-grain high-yield rice variety with less chalkiness.