Genetic study on two maize male sterile mutants obtained by space mutagenesis

Two maize male sterile mutants were selected from the offspring of four maize inbred lines, which were carried into space by the Shenzhou spaceship 4. Their genetic characteristic and stability was analyzed in present study. Crosses were made between the male sterile plants and fertile plants from the same line, and other inbred lines with normal cytoplasm. The ratios of the sterile plants with the fertile plants in their F1, F2 generations, and their reciprocal backcross generations with the male sterile plants were calculated. The results showed that the characteristic in male sterility was stable in different years, different seasons and different locations, and was inheritable from generation to generation. This male sterile was controlled by a single nuclear recessive gene. Since no pollens or a few malformed pollens existed in the anther of the sterile plants, it was a completely sterile type.