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ARS Home » Midwest Area » Ames, Iowa » Corn Insects and Crop Genetics Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #203088
Title: High-throughput gene expression studies provide clues for how cereal crops grow

Author
item Wise, Roger
item MUEHLBAUER, G - UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA

Submitted to: Government Publication/Report
Publication Type: Government Publication
Publication Acceptance Date: 9/22/2006
Publication Date: 9/22/2006
Citation: Wise, R.P., Muehlbauer, G. 2006. High-throughput gene expression studies provide clues for how cereal crops grow. USDA-NRI Research Highlight. 3:1-2.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) was one of the first domesticated cereal grains, originating in the Fertile Crescent over 10,000 years ago. Barley ranks fourth among the cereals in worldwide production and is widely cultivated in all temperate regions from the Arctic Circle to the tropics. In addition to its geographic adaptability, barley is particularly noted for its tolerance to cold, drought, alkali, and salinity. In recent years, access to complete genomic sequences, coupled with rapidly accumulating data related to RNA and protein expression patterns, has made it possible to examine how genes contribute to complex phenotypes. With support from CSREES's National Research Initiative (NRI), Initiative for Future Agricultural Systems (IFAFS), and the U.S. Barley Genome Project (USBGP), an international team of cereal scientists from the USDA-Agricultural Research Service, five U.S. universities, and institutions from five countries on four continents partnered to develop the Barley1 GeneChip for high-throughput gene expression analysis. The international team utilized the Barley1 GeneChip to evaluate the expression of 22,000 genes in fifteen tissues sampled throughout barley development grown under highly controlled conditions. The "Barley Gene Atlas" provides a unique opportunity to integrate detailed information on individual genes into a unified developmental framework that is available to the worldwide research community and a comparative dataset for those investigating genes or regulatory networks in other plant species. Thus, this represents the first coordinated effort to characterize gene function from seed to seed in this important cereal crop.