Importance of over-dominance as the genetic basis of heterosis in rice

In populations derived from commercial hybrid rice combination Shanyou 10, F1 hetero-sis and F2 inbreeding depression were observed on grain yield (GYD) and number of panicles (NP). Using marker loci evenly distributed on the linkage map as fixing factors, the F2 population was divided into sub-populations. In a large number of sub-populations, significant correlations were observed between heterozygosity and GYD, and between heterozygosity and NP. This was especially true in type III sub-populations in which the genotype of a fixing factor was heterozy-gotes. In type III sub-populations, 15 QTL for GYD and 13 QTL for NP were detected, of which the majority exhibited over-dominance effects for increasing the trait values. This study showed that over-dominance played an important role in the genetic control of heterosis in rice.