Nutritional and Agronomic Characterizations of Quality Protein Maize (QPM) Varieties Selected In a Breeding Program In the DR-Congo.

In Sub-Saharan Africa, commercial quality protein maize (QPM) seed is currently available in 17 countries and approximately 200,000 hectares of land are being planted to QPM cultivars. But nutritional characteristics of the released QPM genotypes are limited. A QPM breeding program has been initiated in 2008 in DR-Congo using varieties selected from several agro-ecological regions. The objective of the present study was to determine nutritional characteristics including amino acid and carotenoid profiles of selected QPM from the DR-Congo breeding program. QPMLONGE 5 produced the highest grain yield in several trials in famer’s fields. Lysine content of QPMSR SYNTH and QPM LONGE 5 showed significant increase of 33 and 37%, respectively, over the normal maize varieties. There was a 50 % increase in tryptophan in QPM LONGE 5 compared to normal maize varieties.  More importantly, the two QPM varieties provide proteins with a better amino acid balance than the normal maize varieties.  The level of the four carotenoid (lutein, β-cryptoxanthin, zeraxanthin, and β-carotene) analyzed was significantly higher in the normal maize MUS variety with yellow endosperm compared to all the genotypes with white endosperm. The total carotenoid content in MUS was over 250 fold compared to QPM varieties and other normal maize released in the region (Salongo 2, Kasai, and local). The level of zeaxanthin in MUS accounts for almost 50% of total carotenoids. The use of QPM in poultry resulted in a 50% increase in body weight compared to normal maize over a 9 week-period.