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Volvox carteri project on GenomeWeb

In this week’s issue of Science, research led by investigators at the Department of Energy’s Joint Genome Institute examines the organismal complexity of the multicellular green alga Volvox carteri. Simon Prochnik et al. sequenced the Volvox genome to 11.1-fold coverage using a whole-genome shotgun approach; when compared to Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, its unicellular relative, the team… [Read More]

Volvox genome belies “Small is Simple” Axiom

In the July 9, 2010 issue of Science, researchers led by the DOE JGI and the Salk Institute report on the 138 million-base genome of the multicellular alga Volvox carteri. The work complements the genome of the unicellular alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, which was sequenced by the DOE JGI in 2007 and is used by researchers… [Read More]

Volvox algae and sex evolution on Newswise

“We found that the Volvox mating locus is about five times bigger than that of Chlamydomonas,” says postdoctoral researcher and co-first author Patrick Ferris, Ph.D. “We wanted to understand the evolutionary basis of this. How did it happen? And where did these new genes come from?” To trace the origin of the added genes, the… [Read More]

Volvox algae and sex evolution on ScienceDaily

Although the genomes of Chlamydomonas and Volvox are similar in most ways, there is one glaring exception that provided the Salk researchers with an entrée into the origin of male and female sexes-the so-called mating locus that functions in much the same way as human X and Y chromosomes to determine gender. When Umen and… [Read More]

Volvox algae and sex evolution on redOrbit

A multicellular green alga, Volvox carteri, may have finally unlocked the secrets behind the evolution of different sexes. A team led by researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies has shown that the genetic region that determines sex in Volvox has changed dramatically relative to that of the closely related unicellular alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii…. [Read More]

B. braunii algal genome project on Physorg.com

But, a shortcoming of B. braunii is its relatively slow growth rate. While the algae that produce ‘vegetable-type’ oils may double their growth every six to 12 hours, B. braunii‘s doubling rate is about four days, he said. “Thus, getting large amounts of oil from B. braunii is more time consuming and thus more costly,”… [Read More]

B. braunii algal genome project on Checkbiotech.org

“Without understanding how the cellular machinery of a given algae works on the molecular level, it won’t be possible to improve characteristics such as oil production, faster growth rates or increased photosynthesis,” Devarenne said. Like most green algae, B. braunii is capable of producing great amounts of hydrocarbon oils in a very small land area…. [Read More]

B. braunii algae project on redOrbit

It’s not just a gee-whiz science trivia, Devarenne said. B. braunii is a prime candidate for biofuel production because some races of the green algae typically “accumulate hydrocarbons from to 30 percent to 40 percent of their dry weight, and are capable of obtaining hydrocarbon contents up to 86 percent of their dry weight. “As… [Read More]

Botrycoccus genome project on ScienceDaily

“Our results support the original Berkeley DNA sequence used for phylogenetic placement was from a contaminating algae,” Devarenne said. “And our study places the B race of B. braunii in the correct location on the ‘algal family tree’.” The actual genome sequencing and mapping will be performed by DOE’s Joint Genome Institute. Read more on… [Read More]

“Craig Venter Has Algae Biofuel in Synthetic Genomics’ Pipeline”

In his Joint Genome Institute keynote speech in March, Venter said “the new algae” is something that “secretes whatever lipid size we want to engineer. This changes algae from what everybody’s been looking at as a farming problem into a manufacturing problem. So we are trying to get algae to go into a continuous production… [Read More]