Volatilome–Genome-Wide Association Study on Wholemeal Maize Flour

Odor
and aroma, resulting from the perception of volatiles by the
olfactory receptors, are important in consumer food acceptance. To
develop more efficient molecular breeding tools to improve the odor/aroma
on maize (Zea mays L.), a staple food
crop, increasing the knowledge on the genetic basis of maize volatilome
is needed. In this work, we conducted a genome-wide association study
on a unique germplasm collection to identify genomic regions controlling
maize wholemeal flour’s volatilome. We identified 64 regions
on the maize genome and candidate genes controlling the levels of
15 volatiles, mainly aldehydes. As an example, the Zm00001d033623
gene was within a region associated with 2-octenal (E) and 2-nonenal (E), two byproducts of linoleic
acid oxidation. This gene codes for linoleate 9S-lipoxygenase,
an enzyme responsible for oxidizing linoleic acid. This knowledge
can now support the development of molecular tools to increase the
selection efficacy/efficiency of these volatiles within maize breeding
programs.