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ARS Home » Midwest Area » Columbia, Missouri » Plant Genetics Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #118039
Title: ADVANCED BREEDING FOR GERMPLASM ENHANCEMENT AND YIELD IMPROVEMENT

Author
item MALUSZYNSKI, M - FAO/IAEA- VIENNA, AUSTRIA
item Gustafson, J
item MALUSZYNSKA, J - SILESIAN UNIV - POLAND
item SZAREJKO, I - SILESIAN UNIV - POLAND

Submitted to: International Rice Commission Newsletter
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 12/5/2000
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Recent developments in plant molecular biology and bioinformatics bring, almost daily, new data on structure and organization of genomes, gene location, and regulation of gene expression and function. The genetic maps of many plants are becoming densely saturated with molecular markers and gene locations are confirmed by physical mapping on chromosomes. The Arabidopsis thaliana L. genome will be fully sequenced in 2003 and it has one of the smallest genomes. Around 120 million nucleic bases, it is four-fold smaller than the rice genome. Intensive work on genomics is rapidly increasing the information available in databases, not only for model crops but also for many other plant species, with gene specific DNA sequences making it possible to search for known functions of respective orthologous sequences. Gene function analysis will be significantly accelerated using the microarray method which makes it possible to explore an entire cDNA library on a few DNA microchips. The situation with respect to practical crop breeding is in great contrast to these research possibilities and developments. In many crops, very little, if any, breeding progress has been observed over the last decade. There is no doubt that all emerging technologies will contribute and decide on the future of plant breeding. However, present stagnation in the level of production of many crops needs rapid widespread application of the currently available technologies in ongoing crop breeding programs. The use of a technology should be based mainly on scientific capacities and on the economics of plant breeding. In rice breeding, the situation is even more complicated as in addition to yield, increase of grain quality should be strongly considered.