waxy Locus and Its Mutant Types in Maize Zea mays L.

The waxy (wx) locus of Zea mays L. encodes a granule-bound starch synthase (GBSS I = waxy protein) required for the synthesis of amylose in endosperm and pollen grain. This review covers recent advances in understanding the waxy locus in maize, focusing particularly on the new information on mutant type and mutation mechanisms. The results showed that the insertion and deletion played an important role in the generation of spontaneous wx-mutations. The current status of utilizing waxy locus has been summarized and the perspectives of the further studies on this locus have also been proposed.