GENETIC DIVERSITY OF MAIZE INBRED LINES AS INFERRED FROM SSR MARKERS

Creating new maize hybrids with greater yield potential is a permanent goal of breeding programs all over the world. Long-time existing and new problems related to different biotic and abiotic stresses and the growing needs of the world market require constant work on finding new ways for advancing maize production. Molecular marker technology is one of the fastest developing fields and its implementation has already given results in solving different problems related to maize breeding improvement. The aim of the study presented herein was characterization and genetic similarity assessment of twenty-nine maize inbred lines from Maize Research Institute collection using Simple Sequence Repeats (SSR) markers. The analysis was done using 20 pairs of SSR primers with clearly visible and reproducible results. A total of 119 alleles were detected with a mean of 5.8 per locus. PIC (Polymorphism Information Content) values were in the range from 0.45 to 0.92 (average 0.74). Genetic similarities calculated using Jaccard's coefficient ranged from 0.27 to 0.99. Cluster and Principal Component Analysis (PCA) analysis were done using matrices of similarity in the NTSYSpc software, version 2.1. Results of both classifications were moderately in agreement with the pedigree data of analysed genotypes. The information about genetic diversity of maize inbred lines revealed by SSR markers could be useful in planning strategies for future maize breeding programs.