Corn Variety I222066 Breeding for Uniform Hybrid Populations

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Solution Overview

Problem

Corn breeding aims to combine desirable traits like yield, disease resistance, and uniformity, but existing methods struggle to develop stable inbred plants with predictable performance, often resulting in non-uniform hybrid populations due to genetic variability.

Innovation Solution

The development of the corn variety I222066, which includes cytoplasmic or nuclear factors for male sterility and additional heritable traits such as herbicide tolerance and disease resistance, along with tissue culture techniques for regenerating plants with specific genetic characteristics, ensures a homogeneous population of inbred corn plants with improved agronomic traits.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If traditional breeding methods are used to develop inbred plants, then genetic diversity is maintained, but uniformity and predictability of hybrid performance deteriorate

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvegenetic diversityVSAvoiduniformity of hybrid population
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

The breeding process is segmented into distinct phases: developing separate homozygous inbred lines with specific traits, then crossing them to produce uniform hybrids. This segmentation allows genetic diversity to be maintained in the parental lines while achieving uniformity in the hybrid offspring through controlled cross-pollination.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

Inbred plants are developed and stabilized through multiple generations of self-pollination before the hybrid crossing stage. This preliminary action of creating homozygous lines ensures that when crosses are made, the resulting hybrids will be uniform and predictable, resolving the contradiction between maintaining genetic diversity and achieving hybrid uniformity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

2Manufacturing precision

If self-pollination is used to develop inbred plants, then uniformity of inbred lines is improved, but time required for breeding increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveuniformity of inbred linesVSAvoidbreeding cycle duration
Core Design Contradiction:
Manufacturing precisionVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The inbred lines are developed to be self-pollinating, allowing them to maintain their homozygous state and uniformity without requiring external intervention for each generation. This self-service mechanism accelerates the breeding process by eliminating the need for manual cross-pollination controls during the inbreeding phase.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

3Adaptability or versatility

If cross-pollination is used to produce hybrids, then genetic variability and adaptability are improved, but uniformity of the hybrid population deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvegenetic variability of hybridsVSAvoiduniformity of hybrid population
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies different pollination strategies to different parts of the breeding system: self-pollination is used locally within inbred line development to maintain uniformity, while controlled cross-pollination is used locally at the hybridization stage to introduce genetic variability. This localized application of different pollination methods resolves the contradiction between genetic variability and hybrid uniformity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

Data Source

PatentUS7485783B1Plants and seeds of corn variety I222066
Publication Date: 2009.02.03 MONSANTO TECHNOLOGY LLC

AI summary

According to the invention, there is provided seed and plants of the corn variety designated I222066. The invention thus relates to the plants, seeds and tissue cultures of the variety I222066, and to methods for producing a corn plant produced by crossing a corn plant of variety I222066 with itself or with another corn plant, such as a plant of another variety. The invention further relates to corn seeds and plants produced by crossing plants of variety I222066 with plants of another variety, such as another inbred line. The invention further relates to the inbred and hybrid genetic complements of plants of variety I222066.