Data from: Enhanced correlations of EST-SSR based genetic distance with hybrid performance, specific hybridizing ability and heterosis using effect-increasing and effect-decreasing alleles: a case study in Eucalyptus L'Hér

A factorial mating population between 10 Eucalyptus
urophylla S. T. Blake and 10 E.
tereticornis Smith parents tested at two sites was used to
investigate the relationship of parental genetic variation to hybrid mean
value (MV), specific hybridizing ability (SHA), and heterosis. Based on
184 polymorphic expressed sequence tag (EST) derived simple sequence
repeats (SSR) markers, genetic distance (GD) between parents (GDAll)
ranged from 0.293 to 0.783, averaging at 0.700. For tree height,
breast-high diameter and wood density at age of 7.5 years, GDAll,
GDs based on markers beyond 0.70 and 0.80 in polymorphism information
content and GDs based on alleles within 0.10–0.90, 0.20–0.80, and
0.30–0.70 in allele frequency were not significantly correlated with MV,
SHA, and the majority of heterosis types. GD based on effect-significant
alleles was significantly correlated only with a few of traits or for
certain site, while GDs based on effect-increasing (GDIA) and
effect-decreasing alleles (GDDA) had significantly positive and negative
correlations, respectively, with all the MV and SHA as well as across-site
mid-parent heterosis. These results suggest the potential utility of
GDIA and GDDA for molecular prediction of hybrid
performance, SHA, and heterosis in Eucalyptus and may
have implications for hybrid breeding in other plants.