Sorghum Inbred PHW4OLXKE Breeding for Yield Stability

Resolve Bottlenecks,
Find Innovative Solutions
Generate Solutions

Solution Overview

Problem

Current sorghum breeding techniques face challenges in developing stable, high-yielding hybrids that combine desirable traits such as disease resistance, drought tolerance, and improved agronomic characteristics, while maintaining genetic integrity and uniformity, especially under extreme weather conditions.

Innovation Solution

The development of the sorghum line PHW4OLXKE, which involves locus conversion and transformation methods to introduce specific traits, ensuring genetic integrity and enhancing traits like disease resistance, drought tolerance, and yield stability through backcrossing and molecular marker-assisted breeding.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If conventional sorghum breeding techniques are used, then basic crop production is maintained, but yield stability and resistance to diseases and drought are insufficient

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveyield stabilityVSAvoidcrop yield
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The breeding program segments the development process into distinct stages: creating core inbred lines with specific traits, developing hybrid combinations, and conducting multi-environment trials. This segmentation allows systematic improvement of yield stability through controlled crossbreeding of lines with complementary characteristics.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent employs molecular marker-assisted selection to track and change specific genetic parameters related to yield stability, disease resistance, and drought tolerance. By monitoring marker frequencies and phenotypic expressions across generations, the breeding program precisely modifies plant characteristics to achieve both higher yields and greater reliability under stress conditions.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

2Ease of operation

If dwarfing genes are selected to improve harvestability, then plant height is reduced for better mechanical harvesting, but genetic diversity and adaptability are limited

Engineering Contradiction:
ImproveharvestabilityVSAvoidgenetic diversity
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The breeding program maintains genetic diversity by developing multiple inbred lines with different genetic backgrounds, each carrying dwarfing genes at different loci. This segmentation of genetic material allows the program to preserve diversity while achieving the desired harvestability trait through selective combination of lines.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent creates composite genetic structures by combining multiple inbred lines with complementary traits in hybrid varieties. These composite hybrids maintain the dwarfing characteristics needed for mechanical harvesting while incorporating diverse genetic elements that provide adaptability to different environments and conditions.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #40Composite materials

3Productivity

If mechanical harvesting is implemented, then harvesting efficiency is improved, but uniformity of plant characteristics becomes critical and difficult to maintain

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveharvesting efficiencyVSAvoiduniformity of plant characteristics
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

The breeding program uses molecular markers and phenotypic selection to precisely control and uniformize key plant characteristics such as plant height, panicle emergence, and maturity timing. By monitoring and adjusting these parameters across generations, the program ensures uniformity that enables efficient mechanical harvesting while maintaining genetic diversity through controlled crossbreeding.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

Data Source

PatentUS9149015B1Sorghum inbred PHW4OLXKE
Publication Date: 2015.10.06 PIONEER HI BREED INTERNATIONAL INC

AI summary

A novel sorghum variety designated PHW4OLXKE and seed, plants and plant parts thereof. Methods for producing a plant that comprise crossing sorghum variety PHW4OLXKE with another plant. Methods for producing a plant containing in its genetic material one or more traits introgressed into PHW4OLXKE through backcross conversion and/or transformation, and to the sorghum seed, plant and plant part produced thereby. Hybrid sorghum seed, plant or plant part produced by crossing the sorghum variety PHW4OLXKE or a locus conversion of PHW4OLXKE with another sorghum variety.