Crop evolution: from genetics to genomics.
The advent of the genomics age has greatly facilitated the study of crop evolution. While full-scale genome sequencing projects are underway for just a handful of crop plants, recent years have witnessed a tremendous increase in the availability of DNA sequence data for virtually all major crops. Such resources have bolstered 'traditional' genetic approaches such as QTL mapping and candidate gene-based association studies. They have also allowed us to undertake genome-wide analyses in which we simultaneously consider the importance of a large and essentially random collection of genes. These sorts of analyses promise a more or less unbiased view of the genetic basis of crop evolution and will probably result in the identification of agronomically important genes that would have otherwise been overlooked.
Burke
John M
JM
University of Georgia, Department of Plant Biology, Miller Plant Sciences Building, Athens, GA 30602, USA. jmburke@uga.edu
Burger
Jutta C
JC
Chapman
Mark A
MA
D002874:Chromosome Mapping; D018556:Crops, Agricultural / Q000235:genetics*; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D023281:Genomics; D015810:Linkage Disequilibrium; D040641:Quantitative Trait Loci; D012641:Selection, Genetic