Maize plant having increased seed yield through recessive genetic determinants that confer expanded corn ear tips

Abstract

This invention provides a novel means of making maize hybrids and inbreds with expanded ear tip phenotypes for promoting increased seed yield from recessive genetic determinants. This is achieved by making standard inbred×hybrid as well as inbred×inbred crosses followed by selection in the subsequent self-pollinated generations from these plants for expanded ear tip phenotype characteristics to produce new parent inbred lines. Next, the resulting inbreds, having a different pedigree but possessing the recessive expanded ear tip genetic determinants, are crossed to cause the expanded ear tip trait to express as a homozygous recessive trait in an otherwise primarily heterozygous hybrid.

1 - 39 . (canceled) 
   
   
       40 . Seed of maize inbred line designated 97RHspo, representative seed of said line having been deposited under ATCC Accession No. ______ PTA-6982. 
   
   
       41 . A maize plant, or parts thereof, produced by growing the seed of  claim 40 . 
   
   
       42 . Pollen of the plant of  claim 41 . 
   
   
       43 . An ovule of the plant of  claim 41 . 
   
   
       44 . A maize plant, or parts thereof, having all of the physiological and morphological characteristics of the maize plant of  claim 41 . 
   
   
       45 . A tissue culture of regenerable cells from the maize plant of  claim 41 . 
   
   
       46 . A tissue culture according to  claim 45 , wherein cells of the tissue culture or protoplasts produced from the tissue culture are from a tissue selected from the group consisting of leaves, pollen, embryos, roots, root tips, anthers, silks, flowers, kernels, ears, cobs, husks, and stalks. 
   
   
       47 . A maize plant regenerated from the tissue culture of  claim 45 , wherein the regenerated plant has all the morphological and physiological characteristics of inbred line 97RHspo. 
   
   
       48 . A method for producing a hybrid corn seed comprising crossing a first inbred parent maize plant with a second inbred parent maize plant and harvesting the resultant hybrid corn seed, wherein said first inbred parent maize plant or said second parent maize plant is the maize plant of  claim 41 . 
   
   
       49 . The method of  claim 48  including backcrossing the maize plant of  claim 41  with a hybrid maize plant grown from the resultant hybrid corn seed of  claim 48 . 
   
   
       50 . A method for producing a maize plant comprising transforming the maize plant of  claim 41  with a transgene wherein the transgene confers a characteristic selected from the group consisting of herbicide resistance, insect resistance, resistance to bacterial disease, resistance to fungal disease, resistance to viral disease, modified fatty acid, modified carbohydrate metabolism, decreased phytate content, male sterility and corn endosperm with improved nutritional quality. 
   
   
       51 . A maize plant produced by the method of  claim 50 . 
   
   
       52 . A method for producing a hybrid maize plant comprising crossing the maize plant of  claim 41  with a second maize plant having a genetic determinant that confers a characteristic selected from the group consisting of herbicide resistance, insect resistance, resistance to bacterial disease, resistance to fungal disease, resistance to viral disease, modified fatty acid, modified carbohydrate metabolism, decreased phytate content, male sterility and corn endosperm with improved nutritional quality. 
   
   
       53 . A maize plant produced by the method of  claim 52 .