Theory
Unit I
Historical aspect of heterosis, nomenclature and definitions of heterosis; Heterosis in natural population and inbred population; Evolutionary aspects - Genetic consequences of selfing, sibbing and crossing in self-and cross-pollinated and asexually propagated crops; Pre-Mendelian and Post-Mendelian ideas - Evolutionary concepts of heterosis; Genetic theories of heterosis-Physiological, Biochemical and molecular factors underlining heterosis; theories and their estimation; Biometrical basis of heterosis. [Read Here]
Unit II
Prediction of heterosis from various crosses, inbreeding depression, coefficient of inbreeding and its estimation, residual heterosis in F2 and segregating populations, importance of inbreeding in exploitation of heterosis - case studies.; Relationship between genetic distance and expression of heterosis, case studies; Divergence and genetic distance analyses, morphological and molecular genetic distance in predicting heterosis; Development of heterotic pools in germplasm/ genetic stocks and inbreeds, their improvement for increasing heterosis.[Read Here]
Unit III
Male sterility and use in heterosis breeding; Male sterile line creation and diversification in self-pollinated, cross pollinated and asexually propagated crops; Creation of male sterility through genetic engineering and its exploitation in heterosis; Maintenance, transfer and restoration of different types of male sterility; Use of self-incompatibility in development of hybrids. .[Read Here]
Unit IV
Hybrid seed production system: 3-line, 2-line and 1-line system; Development of inbreeds and parental lines- A, B and R lines-functional male sterility; Commercial exploitation of heterosis, maintenance breeding of parental lines in hybrids; Fixation of heterosis in self, cross and often cross pollinated crops, asexually/ clonally propagated crops, problems and prospects; Apomixis in fixing heterosis-concept of single line hybrid; Organellar heterosis and complementation..[Read Here]
Unit V
Hybrid breeding in wheat, rice, cotton, maize, pearl millet, sorghum and rapeseed- mustard, sunflower, safflower and castor oilseed crops and pigeonpea.
Practical
Characterization of male sterile lines using morphological descriptors; Restorer line identification and diversification of male sterile sources; Male sterile line creation in crop plants, problems in creation of CGMS system, ways of overcoming them; Diversification and restoration; Success stories of hybrid breeding in Maize, Rice, Pearl millet, Sorghum and Pigeon pea; Understanding the difficulties in breeding apomicts; Estimation of heterotic parameters in self, cross and asexually propagated crops; Estimation from the various models for heterosis parameters; Hybrid seed production in field crops an account on the released hybrids, their potential, problems and ways of overcoming it; Hybrid breeding at National and International level, opportunities ahead.
