Effects of foliar application of exogenous regulators on the grain quality and starch physicochemical properties of waxy maize

Effects of foliar application of exogenous regulators on the grain quality and starch physicochemical properties of waxy maize | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Effects of foliar application of exogenous regulators on the grain quality and starch physicochemical properties of waxy maize Wenxin Zhang, Meng Zhang, Lin Xiao Liu, Meng Wu, Yujing Zhang, and 2 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-8982370/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Revision Version 1 posted 9 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Foliar application of exogenous regulators is an important agronomic practice for improving the grain quality of waxy maize. This study investigated the effects of foliar applications of iron chlorin e6 (ICE6), coronatine (COR), 14-hydroxylated brassinosteroid (14HB) and water control (CK) on the grain quality and starch physicochemical properties of two waxy maize cultivars, namely Jikenuo 2 (JKN2) and Tianguinuo 932 (TGN932). Compared with CK, ICE6, COR, and14HB treatments enhanced the grain sweetness, the contents of soluble sugar, total starch and amylopectin, as well as reduced the pericarp thickness and skin residue rate. Additionally, these three regulators treatments increased the grain hardness and decreased grain resilience. These three regulators treatments increased starch peak viscosity, volume-weighted mean particle size, rapidly and slowly digestible starch, reduce relative crystallinity and resistant starch content. Granule size was the primary determinant factor in grain chewiness and hardness, starch pasting properties and crystallinity predominantly affected grain springiness and resilience. Overall, foliar application of iron chlorin e6, coronatine and 14-hydroxylated brassinosteroid provide new insights for the utilisation of waxy maize starch in the food industry. Waxy maize Exogenous regulators Grain quality Starch physicochemical properties Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Revision Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Revision requested 21 Mar, 2026 Reviews received at journal 21 Mar, 2026 Reviews received at journal 19 Mar, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 17 Mar, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 17 Mar, 2026 Reviewers invited by journal 17 Mar, 2026 Editor assigned by journal 04 Mar, 2026 Submission checks completed at journal 04 Mar, 2026 First submitted to journal 26 Feb, 2026 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-8982370","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":607663315,"identity":"ef02fd66-405b-40cd-92f1-8081a9daafa2","order_by":0,"name":"Wenxin Zhang","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Hebei Normal University of Science and Technology","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Wenxin","middleName":"","lastName":"Zhang","suffix":""},{"id":607663316,"identity":"c70787af-805d-4611-bed2-f8b44951c1bd","order_by":1,"name":"Meng Zhang","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Hebei Normal University of Science and 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