Phenotypic variation in grain mineral compositions of pigmented maize conserved in indigenous communities of Mexico

In recent decades, pigmented corn has aroused great interest due to its contributions of bioactive compounds and nutritional elements for improvement of health. To evaluate the mineral grain contents in a pigmented corn collection from Oaxaca, Mexico, 57 accessions from indigenous communities and three commercial varieties were grown in two cultivation locations. A random grain sample was obtained from the crops, and the Cu, Fe, Mn, Zn, P, Mg, K, Ca, Na and S contents were quantified using an optical emission spectrophotometer with inductively coupled plasma (ICP-OES). The cropping localities significantly influenced the mineral contents. Likewise, significant differences were observed between accessions, groups of pigmented grains and accession-locality interactions except for zinc. The groups of pigmented grains interact with Cu, Fe, Ca and Na in the environment. Among the accessions, high variation was observed in all elements except for Zn. The results show that a breeding program can be initiated for the outstanding blue, red and yellow grain accessions.