SAS Macro for the Generation and Randomization of MERC Designs for Comparing t Test Lines with a Control Line

Abstract

Mating designs/crossing plans are generally conducted to study the genetic potential of plants and animals. It is a procedure of producing the progenies by taking different crosses of parental lines. These crosses further subjected to environmental conditions in a systematic manner with the help of some experimental /environmental designs. Diallel and partial diallel cross plans are two of the commonly used mating designs. The main interest of such mating designs is in estimating the contrasts pertaining to the combining ability effects of inbred lines involved in the crosses. The problem of comparing t test lines with a control line under a row–column setup in complete diallel cross experiment when specific combining ability (sca) effect is included in the model has been investigated by Varghese et al (2017) and developed methods to construct three classes of Mating-Environmental Row–Column (MERC) designs which are variance balanced for estimating the contrasts pertaining to general combining ability (gca) effects free from sca effects. Here, two macros have been developed for generating the following series of designs developed by Varghese et al., (2017) for comparing t test lines with a control line by providing only number test lines (t): Series I: Parameters v = , p = q = t, r1 (replication of test versus control) = 1 and r2 (replication of test versus test) = 2. Series II (Case 1 and Case 2): Parameters v = , p = , q = t, r1 (replication of test versus control) = t-1 and r2 (replication of test versus test) = t-2