ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Plant Sci.
Sec. Plant Genetics, Epigenetics and Chromosome Biology
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpls.2025.1671460
Genome-wide Association Studies (GWAS) on Leaf Midrib Architecture in Maize
Provisionally accepted
- 1Shenyang Agricultural University, Shenyang, China
- 2Centro Internacional de Mejoramiento de Maiz y Trigo, Texcoco, Mexico
- 3Liaoning Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shenyang, China
Select one of your emails
You have multiple emails registered with Frontiers:
Notify me on publication
Please enter your email address:
If you already have an account, please login
You don't have a Frontiers account ? You can register here
Maize leaf midribs not only transport water and nutrients but also provide mechanical support that helps maintain leaf angle and optimize photosynthesis. Leaf midrib architecture (LMA) is a complex trait with an incompletely understood genetic basis. Here, we conducted genome-wide association studies (GWAS) on three LMA components—total midrib thickness, midrib basal thickness, and midrib width—using 508 elite maize inbred lines evaluated across two environments and genotyped with 558,630 high-quality single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). We identified six SNPs significantly associated with LMA variation and prioritized 27 candidate genes in the associated intervals. These candidates include loci encoding growth regulators; WRKY and YABBY transcription factors; auxin-responsive SAUR and AUX/IAA family members; LOB domain-containing proteins; and microtubule-related proteins. Our findings provide genetic entry points for dissecting maize leaf vein and midrib development and offer targets for marker-assisted selection to improve leaf venation traits in breeding.
Keywords: leaf venation, Leaf vein, Vascular bundle, Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), YABBY gene
Received: 23 Jul 2025; Accepted: 09 Oct 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Dang, Ji, Liu, Bai, Zhu, Zhang, Zhang and Ruan. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Ao Zhang, zhangao7@vip.qq.com
Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.