GRAIN YIELD STABILITY AND BIOCHEMICAL NUTRIENT CONTENT IN WHITE CORN EXPERIMENTAL CROSSES

In Mexico, about half of white corn production is used for human consumption. In a breeding program, in addition to increasing the yield and genotypes stability, the aim is to improve grain quality. Assuming that there is genetic variation among the elite genotypes evaluated in this research, at least one genotype was considered to be outstanding for its high productive potential and desirable characteristics for grain quality. The objective of this work was to determine the genetic variation present in experimental hybrids in terms of yield potential and grain quality, as well as to identify the most outstanding genotypes. In 2016, twenty white corn experimental crosses were evaluated under a randomized block design with three replications in two locations of the ecological area of the High Valleys of Mexico and one location in a transitional area. Yield stability was determined using the additive main effects and multiplicative interaction model. Grain quality was evaluated through starch, protein and oil content. Most of the crosses had higher yield and stability than the controls (commercial hybrids). Likewise, nutrient content varied among them for each biochemical compound; oil concentration ranged from 3.5 to 6.4 g 100 g-1 dry matter (ms); protein, from 5.5 to 9.8 g 100 g-1 ms; and starch, from 72.6 to 96.6 g 100 g-1 ms. Based on their phenotypic stability, yield and grain quality, we observed that crosses 1213, 1217, 1218, 1314, 1418, and 1812 were outstanding, which can be used to produce grain with promising starch and oil content. In general, we infer that the crosses showed potential for starch utilization and tortilla production.