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Poplar leaf rust genome project on SeedQuest

Sequenced at the DOE JGI using the Sanger platform under the 2006 Community Sequencing Program, the 101-million base pair genome of Melampsora larici-populina, the first tree pathogen sequenced, was made publicly available in 2008. Poplar leaf rust outbreaks weaken poplar trees, a candidate bioenergy feedstock whose genome sequence was published by the DOE JGI in… [Read More]

Single cell sequencing in Genome Technology

Using a single-cell approach developed by Ramunas Stepanauskas at the Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences in West Boothbay Harbor, Maine, a group of researchers aims to sequence 60 new marine bacterio-plankton in conjunction with the US Department of Energy’s Joint Genome Institute. That way, there will be better reference genomes available for researchers studying marine… [Read More]

Comparative genomics of social amoebae

Found in soils worldwide, slime molds such as Dictyosteliumdiscoideumare perhaps best known by their behaviors in the presence or absence of food. When food is plentiful, the social amoeba behave as individuals, but when food is scarce, they come together to form multicellular “fruiting bodies” that look like a flower bud atop a single stalk… [Read More]

JGI Science @ the Lesher on Walnut Creek Patch

Most of us don’t even think about the insides of cows, the genes of waterfleas or the behavioral genetics of pollinating bees, but the 250 expert researchers who sequence microbial species—and actually understand the results—also know how to translate heavy duty science into layman’s language. Read more on the Walnut Creek Patch [Read More]

First analysis of Trichoderma species as biocontrol agents

Trichodermaatroviride and T. virens are filamentous fungi commonly found in the soil and are good at protecting crops such as beans, tomatoes, strawberries and cotton against a range of fungal pathogens. Their ability to do so could offer bioenergy crop growers an alternative to chemical pesticide treatment. Both were selected for sequencing by the DOE… [Read More]

Methylmercury-producing bacterium in Shorelines

A newly decoded bacterial genome brings scientists one step closer to unlocking the secret behind the production of methylmercury, the chemical notorious for contaminating tuna and other seafood. Most mercury pollution comes from the burning of fossil fuels. Once in the atmosphere, it seeps into the rain and gradually trickles down to the sea. Certain… [Read More]

Arabidopsis lyrata reference genome now available

Arabidopsis thaliana is a small flowering plant often used as a model system by researchers. As part of the 2006 Community Sequencing Program portfolio, the DOE JGI selected A. thaliana’s close relative A. lyrata for sequencing. By comparing their genomes and the genomes of other, related species, researchers could gain insight into plant genetics, specifically… [Read More]

Methylmercury-producing bacterium in Smithsonian Science

The new genome, sequenced at the California-based DOE Joint Genome Institute, and completed at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, was published in the Journal of Bacteriology. It lays the foundation for future research to examine the little understood mechanisms behind the production of methylmercury. “We know a little about the bacteria that produce methylmercury but we… [Read More]

Arabidopsis lyrata genome project in GenomeWeb

The international research team, led by investigators at the Max Planck Institute for Developmental Biology, compared the newly sequenced genome to the much smaller genome of the model organism A. thaliana. Their findings suggest that the pared down version of the genome found in A. thaliana reflects a spate of small deletions — many affecting… [Read More]