An international consortium, led by Professor Andrew Paterson of the
University of Georgia, has made publicly available the first
‘gold-standard’ genome sequence for cotton. Cotton was among
the first plants studied at the molecular level, and the sequence
obtained by Paterson and his team is the culmination of a 20-plus year
effort in the analysis of cotton genes and genomic DNA. This critical
sequence will be invaluable to better understanding and optimizing the
production and sustainability of the cotton plant.
The research effort of Paterson and others gained momentum in 2007
when a proposal from 22 leading cotton scientists representing the
world’s seven largest cotton-producing nations was approved by
the United States Department of Energy (DOE) Joint Genome Institute
(JGI) Community Sequencing Program.
The study established the strategy that was used for
‘gold-standard’ sequencing of the New World cotton
progenitor, Gossypium raimondii; which was chosen by the worldwide
cotton community to be the first of 50 cotton species to be sequenced.
“This achievement, and the ongoing research community annotations
of our cotton genome, will speed continued improvement of cotton
production and help sustain one of the world’s largest
industries,†said Professor Paterson.
The cotton sequence is among the highest-quality flowering plant
sequences yet produced. A novel strategy integrating
“next-generation†and conventional sequencing methods was
used. Critical to the effort was information about the cotton
hereditary blueprint, which had been accumulated over more than 20
years of research funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation, the
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Cotton Incorporated, and other public
and private agencies.
“This cotton data will help accelerate the study of gene
function, particularly cellulose biosynthesis as it is fundamental to
improved biofuels production,†said Jeremy Schmutz, head of the
DOE JGI Plant Program and a faculty investigator at the HudsonAlpha
Institute for Biotechnology, who led the effort to assemble the
sequence.
“In addition, the unique structure of the cotton fiber makes it
useful in bioremediation, and accelerated cotton improvement also
promises to improve water efficiency and reduce pesticide use.â€
Cotton production contributes heavily to many economies. The value of
cotton fiber grown in the U.S. is typically about $6 billion per year.
Cottonseed oil and meal byproducts add nearly $1 billion more of
value. More than 430,000 domestic jobs are related to cotton
production and processing, with an aggregate influence of about $120
billion on the annual US gross domestic product and an estimated
annual $500 billion worldwide.
Professor Paterson noted that “The cotton community is delighted
at the sequence quality resulting from integration of accumulated and
new information by the skilled team of Mr. Jeremy Schmutz and Dr. Dan
Rokhsar of the DOE JGI. We are enthusiastically pursuing next steps to
improve sustainability of cotton production and increase its role in
the more bio-based economy of the future.â€
Continue reading here:
United States of America:University debuts cotton gold-standard genome
sequence
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