Maize Genomics and Genetics 2024, Vol.15, No.1, 9-17 http://cropscipublisher.com/index.php/mgg 10 editing. We believe that this research will not only advance research on corn genetics, but will also contribute to global food security. 1 Overview of GWAS methods Genome-wide association analysis (GWAS) is a method widely used in genetic research in recent years, especially in the field of crop genetic improvement, showing great potential. GWAS helps scientists reveal the genetic genes that influence complex traits by analyzing the association between genetic variations and traits. 1.1 Basic principles and methods of GWAS The core of GWAS is to identify the association between specific traits and specific regions on the genome (Uffelmann et al., 2021). By scanning the genomes of large numbers of individuals, GWAS can identify single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) or other genetic markers that are significantly associated with differences in traits. This process involves collecting genetic information and trait data from a large number of samples and then using statistical methods to analyze correlations between these data to identify genetic loci that may control the trait. This method does not rely on prior knowledge of candidate genes, giving it a unique advantage in dissecting the genetic basis of complex traits. 1.2 Examples of application of GWAS in crop genetic improvement GWAS has been successfully used in research on genetic improvement of a variety of crops, such as disease resistance research in wheat, yield and quality improvement in rice, and stress resistance traits in corn (Liu and Yan, 2019) . These studies not only discovered a series of genetic loci associated with important agronomic traits, but also revealed the genetic mechanisms by which crops adapt to environmental changes. For example, in the study of rice yield improvement, scientists successfully identified dozens of key genetic loci related to yield through GWAS methods. These findings provide important genetic resources for molecular breeding of rice. 1.3 Specific challenges and solutions for GWAS in corn quality improvement Although GWAS has shown great potential in crop genetic improvement, it also faces some specific challenges in the process of improving corn quality (Lin, 2022, Chinese Journal of Biotechnology, 41(12): 1-3). First of all, the genetic background of corn is complex, and quality-related traits are often controlled by multiple genes and are greatly affected by environmental factors, which increases the difficulty of GWAS analysis. Secondly, the collection of high-quality genetic markers and large-scale phenotypic data requires extremely high resources, which is a big challenge for some research teams. To overcome these challenges, scientists have adopted a variety of strategies. On the one hand, the establishment of a large maize genetic resource library and phenotypic data set provides rich data support for GWAS research. On the other hand, the use of the latest genome sequencing technology, such as next-generation sequencing (NGS), improves the density and quality of genetic markers, making GWAS analysis more accurate. In addition, a series of advanced statistical methods have been developed to process complex genetic data, improving the accuracy and efficiency of analysis. Through these efforts, GWAS methods have achieved remarkable results in corn quality improvement (Hao et al., 2018) . Not only did they successfully identify multiple key genetic loci related to corn quality, they also revealed the complex genetic network that affects many traits such as corn nutritional composition, disease resistance, and ability to adapt to the environment. For example, through GWAS analysis, scientists have discovered several genetic loci directly related to corn starch and protein content. These findings not only enrich our understanding of the genetic basis of corn quality, but also provide important genetic markers for precision breeding. 2 Genetic Basis of Corn Quality-related Traits As an important food and feed crop in the world, corn occupies an indispensable position in the daily diet of humans and animals. As people's requirements for food nutrition and health increase, improving the nutritional quality of corn has become the focus of current breeding research. The improvement of corn quality is not only related to the content of its main components such as starch, protein, and oil, but also involves how to effectively
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjQ4ODYzNQ==