Systematic detection and analysis of gene regulatory evolution in crop plants

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

Plant improvement by making specific crosses and selecting the progeny with favorable traits for further propagation has been a critical human innovation. It has enabled many more people to live on earth than would otherwise be possible, and it has greatly enhanced the productivity of arable land. The underlying basis for plant improvement is coded within plant DNA. Traits between plant varieties differ because of differences in their DNA sequences. In many cases, trait differences are caused by a change in a gene's function. In other cases, differences are caused by changes in the location and the level of a gene's action. The core objective of this proposal is to use recent advances in computational biology and genomic technologies to identify the genes that have contributed to the development of elite crop cultivars.