Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40886827›Full record

ArticleJournal of advanced research2026

A novel genetic framework reveals transcriptional "butterfly effect" underlying heterosis in maize.

Yuhang Guo, Xiaohuan Lu, Dongdong Li, Xianyan Kuang, Wei Song, Xinyu Ye, Zhixue Wei, Ming Wang, Haoying Wang, Xiaosong Yang and 7 more

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of advanced research, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

17 authors.

Yuhang GuoState Key Laboratory of Maize Bio-breeding, National Maize Improvement Center, College of Agronomy and Biotechnology, China Agricultural University, 100193 Beijing, China.
Xiaohuan LuState Key Laboratory of Maize Bio-breeding, National Maize Improvement Center, College of Agronomy and Biotechnology, China Agricultural University, 100193 Beijing, China; State Key Laboratory of Crop Gene Resources and Breeding, National Key Facility for Crop Gene Resources and Genetic Improvement, Institute of Crop Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, 100081 Beijing, China.
Dongdong LiState Key Laboratory of Maize Bio-breeding, National Maize Improvement Center, College of Agronomy and Biotechnology, China Agricultural University, 100193 Beijing, China.
Xianyan KuangDepartment of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences, Alabama A&M University, 35762 Normal, AL, USA.
Wei SongKey Laboratory of Crop Genetics and Breeding of Hebei Province, Institute of Cereal and Oil Crops, Hebei Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, 050035 Shijiazhuang, China.
Xinyu YeState Key Laboratory of Maize Bio-breeding, National Maize Improvement Center, College of Agronomy and Biotechnology, China Agricultural University, 100193 Beijing, China.
Zhixue WeiState Key Laboratory of Maize Bio-breeding, National Maize Improvement Center, College of Agronomy and Biotechnology, China Agricultural University, 100193 Beijing, China.
Ming WangState Key Laboratory of Maize Bio-breeding, National Maize Improvement Center, College of Agronomy and Biotechnology, China Agricultural University, 100193 Beijing, China.
Haoying WangState Key Laboratory of Maize Bio-breeding, National Maize Improvement Center, College of Agronomy and Biotechnology, China Agricultural University, 100193 Beijing, China.
Xiaosong YangState Key Laboratory of Maize Bio-breeding, National Maize Improvement Center, College of Agronomy and Biotechnology, China Agricultural University, 100193 Beijing, China.
Yong YanQuzhou Experimental Station of China Agricultural University, 057250 Handan, China.
Zeyang MaState Key Laboratory of Maize Bio-breeding, National Maize Improvement Center, College of Agronomy and Biotechnology, China Agricultural University, 100193 Beijing, China.
Rentao SongState Key Laboratory of Maize Bio-breeding, National Maize Improvement Center, College of Agronomy and Biotechnology, China Agricultural University, 100193 Beijing, China.
Shaojiang ChenState Key Laboratory of Maize Bio-breeding, National Maize Improvement Center, College of Agronomy and Biotechnology, China Agricultural University, 100193 Beijing, China.
Junjie FuState Key Laboratory of Crop Gene Resources and Breeding, National Key Facility for Crop Gene Resources and Genetic Improvement, Institute of Crop Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, 100081 Beijing, China. Electronic address: fujunjie@caas.cn.
Mingshun LiState Key Laboratory of Crop Gene Resources and Breeding, National Key Facility for Crop Gene Resources and Genetic Improvement, Institute of Crop Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, 100081 Beijing, China. Electronic address: lims2013@126.com.
Wenxin LiuState Key Laboratory of Maize Bio-breeding, National Maize Improvement Center, College of Agronomy and Biotechnology, China Agricultural University, 100193 Beijing, China. Electronic address: wenxinliu@cau.edu.cn.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionMaize is one of the first crops to benefit from heterosis, significantly enhancing commercial breeding. Despite extensive research, the molecular mechanisms of heterosis remain elusive.

objectivesThis study integrates a novel genetic framework with transcriptomic and phenotypic analyses to identify heterosis-related genes and uncover their regulatory mechanisms.

methodsSingle-segment substitution lines (SSSLs) were combined with a novel double single-factor differential subtraction (DSDS) strategy to identify heterosis-related differentially expressed genes (DEGs). Unlike traditional parent-hybrid comparisons, DSDS subtracts background expression noise and identifies heterosis-related genes within a controlled genomic context. Five hybrid groups, including mini-F

resultsHeterosis exhibited a nonlinear trajectory with parental genetic distance, displaying a rapid increase at low genomic heterogeneity levels before reaching a saturation point at moderate divergence. DSDS identified 359 and 80 heterosis-related DEGs in two mini-F

conclusionThis study demonstrates the effectiveness of SSSL-based DSDS in identifying heterosis-related genes and provides a framework for dissecting transcriptional regulation in heterosis. The observed transcriptional "butterfly effect" offers a novel perspective on how small genomic variations contribute to heterosis. Future research should explore additional substitution-region DEGs to further unravel the molecular basis of heterosis in maize.

Indexed as

Hybrid VigorZea maysGene Expression ProfilingGene Expression Regulation, PlantPhenotypePlant BreedingTranscriptomeDifferentially expressed geneGenetic distanceHeterosisMaize breedingSingle-segment substitution lines (SSSLs)Transcriptional regulation

Identifiers

PMID40886827
PMCPMC13154653

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.