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Simple non-isoprenoids hydrocarbons (Perera et al. 2010c) occur in low amounts in discrete parts of the biosphere (eg bacteria, algae, and the cuticles of plants and insects). However, these molecules are major constituents of the cuticular lipids of many plants, but their biosynthetic origins has become of interest for biofuel applications. Hydrocarbon profiling of surface cuticular lipids in four maize inbred lines (LH1, LH123HT, PHG39, and PHG84) and their genetic hybrids demonstrate heterotic inheritance patterns. Specifically, in pollen this heterosis is expressed as overdominance, whereas in silks this trait displays underdominance. The phenomena that hydrocarbon inheritance pattern is different among the organs of maize implies that different pathways/genes/alleles or genetic regulation networks play a role in hydrocarbon biosynthesis in silks and pollens.