Cereal Chem 68:361-365   |  VIEW ARTICLE

Identification of Modified High-Lysine Maize Genotypes by Reversed-Phase High-Performance Liquid Chromatography.

J. W. Paulis, J. A. Bietz, R. J. Lambert, and E. M. Villegas. Copyright 1991 by the American Association of Cereal Chemists, Inc. 

High-lysine opaque-2 (o2) lines of maize have floury endosperm textures. Maize breeders are developing modified o2 hybrids with hard, vitreous endosperm. Modified o2 kernels are similar in appearance to normal kernels. This article presents a rapid reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (RP- HPLC) method of differentiate normal, o2, and modified o2 maize genotypes based on alcohol-soluble protein composition. Modified o2 endosperms contained more early eluting, high-proline, water-soluble, alcohol-soluble glutelin and less late-eluting zein than did nonmodified o2 or normal endosperms. The RP- HPLC method is potentially useful in maize breeeding programs and commerce for determining modified o2 genotypes with increased lysine contents and hard endosperm texture.