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Related Experiment Videos

A single domestication for maize shown by multilocus microsatellite genotyping.

Yoshihiro Matsuoka1, Yves Vigouroux, Major M Goodman

  • 1Laboratory of Genetics, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706, USA.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
|May 2, 2002
PubMed
Summary

Maize diversity originated from a single domestication event in southern Mexico around 9,000 years ago, challenging previous theories of multiple origins. The oldest maize types are from the Mexican highlands, spreading across the Americas via two main routes.

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Area of Science:

  • Agricultural Science
  • Genetics
  • Archaeology

Background:

  • Maize (Zea mays) exhibits remarkable genetic and morphological diversity among landraces developed by pre-Columbian peoples.
  • Previous hypotheses proposed multiple independent domestications of maize from its wild relative, teosinte, to explain this diversity.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the origins and diversification patterns of maize using phylogenetic analyses.
  • To test the single versus multiple origins hypothesis for maize domestication.

Main Methods:

  • Phylogenetic analyses were conducted on 264 individual maize plants.
  • Each plant was genotyped using 99 microsatellite markers.

Main Results:

  • Phylogenetic analyses challenge the multiple-origins hypothesis, indicating a single domestication event.

Related Experiment Videos

  • All maize originated in southern Mexico approximately 9,000 years ago.
  • The oldest surviving maize types are from the Mexican highlands, with subsequent spread along two primary pathways.
  • Limited evidence for post-domestication gene flow from teosinte into maize was observed.

    • Conclusions:

    • The study supports a single origin of maize domestication in southern Mexico.
    • Maize diversification initiated in the Mexican highlands before spreading to lowland regions.
    • Archaeological and genetic evidence align, suggesting a primary domestication event followed by diversification and dispersal.