Maize Genomics and Genetics 2025, Vol.16, No.3, 119-128 http://cropscipublisher.com/index.php/mgg 127 The development of molecular breeding technology has further promoted the in-depth analysis of the genetic basis of heat resistance. MAS, GWAS, QTL positioning and GS have not only improved the accuracy of breeding, but also greatly shortened the variety selection cycle. In particular, the strategy of building a core germplasm bank and allele mining allows researchers to more efficiently use key gene sites for aggregation and improvement, forming a new path for heat-resistant breeding with multi-gene coordinated regulation as the core. At the same time, the integration of genomic data has also laid a technical foundation for the establishment of a three-dimensional selection model of "phenotype-genotype-environment interaction". CIMMYT's joint GWAS research and ZmHSF20 regulatory network research fully demonstrated the cutting-edge achievements of modern heat-resistant breeding in genetic resource utilization and regulatory mechanism research. The former revealed the multi-gene control characteristics of yield and heat resistance traits and their stable inheritance laws among multiple breeding populations, while the latter clarified the core role of the ZmHSF20-ZmHSF4-ZmCesA2 pathway in cell wall stability and heat resistance formation. These studies not only provide specific molecular targets for the selection of heat-resistant varieties, but also provide technical support and theoretical guidance for the construction of an intelligent and precise corn breeding system. In the future, integrating traditional and modern breeding methods and exploring and utilizing genetic diversity will be important directions to promote the sustainable development of heat-resistant breeding of fresh-eating corn. Acknowledgments We would like to express our gratitude to the two anonymous peer reviewers for their critical assessment and constructive suggestions on our manuscript. Conflict of Interest Disclosure The authors affirm that this research was conducted without any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest. References Alam M., Seetharam K., Zaidi P., Dinesh A., Vinayan M., and Nath U., 2017, Dissecting heat stress tolerance in tropical maize (Zea mays L.), Field Crops Research, 204: 110-119. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.FCR.2017.01.006 Bernardo P., Frey T.S, Barriball K., Paul P.A., and Redinbaugh M., 2021, Detection of diverse maize chlorotic mottle virus isolates in maize seed, Plant Disease, 105(6): 1596-1601. https://doi.org/10.1094/PDIS-07-20-1446-SR Chen Y., Du T., Zhang J., Chen S., Fu J., Li H., and Yang Q., 2023, Genes and pathways correlated with heat stress responses and heat tolerance in maize kernels, Frontiers in Plant Science, 14: 1228213. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2023.1228213 Devasirvatham V., Tan D., and Trethowan R., 2016, Breeding strategies for enhanced plant tolerance to heat stress, Advances in Plant Breeding Strategies: Agronomic, Abiotic and Biotic Stress Traits, 12: 447-469. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-22518-0_12 Djalović I., Kundu S., Bahuguna R., Pareek A., Raza A., Singla-Pareek S., Prasad P., and Varshney R., 2023, Maize and heat stress: physiological, genetic, and molecular insights, The Plant Genome, 17(1): e20378. https://doi.org/10.1002/tpg2.20378 Dowd P., and Johnson E., 2018, Insect damage influences heat and water stress resistance gene expression in field-grown popcorn: implications in developing crop varieties adapted to climate change, Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, 23: 1063-1081. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11027-017-9772-x Driedonks N., Rieu I., and Vriezen W., 2016, Breeding for plant heat tolerance at vegetative and reproductive stages, Plant Reproduction, 29: 67-79. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00497-016-0275-9 El-Sappah A., Rather S., Wani S., Elrys A., Bilal M., Huang Q., Dar Z., Elashtokhy M., Soaud N., Koul M., Mir R., Yan K., Li J., El-Tarabily K., and Abbas M., 2022, Heat stress-mediated constraints in maize (Zeamays) production: challenges and solutions, Frontiers in Plant Science, 13: 879366. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2022.879366 Hill C., and Li C., 2022, Genetic improvement of heat stress tolerance in cereal crops, Agronomy, 12(5): 1205. https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy12051205 Jagtap A., Vikal Y., and Johal G., 2020, Genome-wide development and validation of cost-effective KASP marker assays for genetic dissection of heat stress tolerance in maize, International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 21(19): 7386. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms21197386
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