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ARS Home » Midwest Area » St. Paul, Minnesota » Plant Science Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #261645
Title: The Brachypodium genome sequence: a resource for oat genomics research

Author
item Gutierrezgonzalez, Juan
item Garvin, David

Submitted to: Plant and Animal Genome Conference
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 10/28/2010
Publication Date: 1/18/2011
Citation: Gutierrez, J.J., Garvin, D.F. 2011. The Brachypodium genome sequence: a resource for oat genomics research [abstract]. XIX Plant and Animal Genome Conference Proceedings, January 15-19, 2011, San Diego, California. Abstract No. W096. Available: http://www.intl-pag.org/19/abstracts/W14_PAGXIX_096.html.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Oat (Avena sativa) is an important cereal crop used as both an animal feed and for human consumption. Genetic and genomic research on oat is hindered because it is hexaploid and possesses a large (13 Gb) genome. Diploid Avena relatives have been employed for genetic and genomic studies, but only modest information has been gleaned from comparisons between diploid Avena and oat genetic linkage maps. Additionally, integration of different hexaploid oat maps is hindered due to the lack of shared markers. We assessed the potential of the model grass Brachypodium as a reference genome for oat. Sequences of mapped molecular markers from two hexaploid oat linkage maps and one diploid Avena linkage map were employed to characterize synteny between Brachypodium and oat genomes. Despite many million years of divergence between the two species, syntenic blocks corresponding to 87% of the diploid Avena genetic map and 76.6% of the oat genetic maps, respectively, were identified in Brachypodium. Substantial rearrangements of these syntenic blocks in oat support the presence of subgenomic differentiation in the progenitor genomes of oat. Our results demonstrate that Brachypodium can be used for resolving oat homoeologous linkage group relationships, unifying linkage groups across different oat genetic linkage maps, and identifying genes involved in the accumulation of health-promoting compounds in oat grain.