RNA sequencing enables researchers to gain information about gene expression. In this case it is being used to identify the genetic basis and molecular mechanisms in switchgrass, particularly related to cell wall synthesis, for bioenergy crop relevant traits. Switchgrass is being developed as a bioenergy crop because it is already high-yielding and stress tolerant; nonetheless,…
Building a switchgrass genomic variation database
Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) attracts bioenergy researchers because of its potential for high yield under low input conditions, native origin and wide adaptation and is well along in its development and use as a bioenergy crop. Resequencing multiple lines of switchgrass will provide researchers with a uniform set of genomic variation data, hopefully facilitating development of…
New tool helps find gene markers in microorganisms
Researchers have devised a novel method to exploit relationships between bacteria and archaea for a new set of gene markers The Science The researchers developed a new way to identify gene markers in bacteria and the primitive microorganisms classified in the kingdom known as Archaea. Dubbed, PhyEco (for phylogenetic and phylogenetic ecology) this strategy can…
Why Sequence Dipterans?
A more accurate and detailed understanding of the evolution of regulatory sequences is critical to contemporary genome research. In order to study the evolution of cis-regulation, this project aims to identify and construct functional models of regulatory sequences from a carefully chosen set of developmental genes. The genes will be selected from three diverse families…
Why Sequence Karenia brevis?
Karenia brevis (Davis) Hanson and Moestrup is a unicellular dinoflagellate protist that causes harmful algal blooms that occur annually in the Gulf of Mexico. These “red tides” cause extensive marine animal mortalities and human illness through the production of highly potent neurotoxins known as brevetoxins. Insight into the molecular mechanisms that control the growth and…
Why Sequence Seed Plant Mitochondria?
Plant mitochondrial genomes are one of the last great frontiers for comparative sequencing. Our knowledge of these genomes comes from mapping studies, extensive Southern blot surveys, and very limited sequencing. Furthermore, compared to chloroplast genomes, they have been little used in reconstructing plant phylogeny. Plant mitochondrial genomes have been sequenced from only four angiosperms and…
Why Sequence the Pompeii Worm?
One of the most thermophilic eukaryotes, Alvinella pompejana, the Pompeii worm, is a resident of the Pacific deep-sea hydrothermal vent area. These worms reside on black smoker chimneys 2500 meters under the ocean surface where they experience (1) the highest temperatures and temperature gradients known for any eukaryote (20-80°C), (2) a toxic soup of heavy…
Why Sequence Capitella capitata?
Capitella capitata is a polychaete annelid (a bristle worm) and will be among the first of the Lophotrochozoa (a large superphylum comprising about 1/3 of animal life) to have its genome sequenced. This species has a simple external anatomy that represents well the common body plan of an annelid worm. It is small, adults ranging…
Why Sequence the Leech?
The goal of this project is to produce, annotate, and analyze a high-quality draft genomic sequence for the leech Helobdella robusta. Helobdella is a model annelid for the study of development and evolution at the molecular, cellular, and organismal levels, as well as research in neurobiology, ecology, toxicology, aquaculture, and biomedicine. At ~350 million base…
Why Sequence the Limpet?
The goal of this project is to produce, annotate, and analyze a high-quality draft genomic sequence for a gastropod mollusk, the limpet Lottia scutum. Molluscs and annelids represent two diverse animal phyla that are united (along with several other groups of unsegmented worms) within the superphylum Spiralia, sharing spiral cleavage patterns early in development that…