Efficiency of crosses selection for yield in red rice through diallel analysis

Abstract

Diallel analysis is a methodology used in the genetic improvement of plants. One of its main purposes is to provide subsidies for early identification of promising crosses for the development of high yielding inbred lines. Several articles have been published in diallel analysis, and many recommendations were made either for the selection of certain crosses of lines for hybrids or for the development of competitive inbred lines. However, articles about the validation of information predicted by these analyses and the results in the field are scarce or nonexistent. The objective of this article was to validate diallel analysis using model IV of Gardner and Eberhart published in 1966, a methodology recommended to identify promising crosses among developed inbred lines in red rice. We compared the recommendations of the diallel analysis crosses with the process end the result of inbreeding generations. Recommended crosses by the diallel analysis were different from those obtained after generations of self-fertilization and selection. However, two of the four selected parents were matched. Considerations were made about the accuracy of diallel analysis and the need to validate in practice methodologies that theoretically are of great value.