Genetics and Association Studies of Kernel Shape in Rice

The inheritance of kernel shape and its association with its size, hulling recovery, milling recovery, head rice recovery; water uptake and kernel elongation during cooking were investigated in the segregating generations of six crosses. These six crosses were classified into three groups according to the kernel shape of the parental varieties i.e. slender × bold, slender × medium and medium × bold. Slender kernel was dominant over the medium and bold whereas medium kernel was dominant over bold. The kernel shape was found to be governed by single locus designated as Gs with three alleles Gsl, Gs2, and gs (multiple allelic series). The allelic relationship was found to be Gs1>Gs2>gs. No association was observed between the kernel size and shape. The slender kernel rices had low hulling, milling and head rice recovery but had high water uptake as compared to the bold kernel rices. The kernel shape was independent of kernel elongation during cooking.