Abstract

Rice has a relatively small genome of about 430 Mb, which is the second plant genome to be completely sequenced. Rice is also amenable to genetic studies and transformation, and is not only a model system for genome studies of the cereals but also an important crop in its own right. Currently there are very limited tools for the identification of functions of sequenced genes in rice that are widely available to the research community. In this project, we will develop efficient transposon tagging strategies for large scale transposon mutagenesis in rice. Stable insertion lines will be generated. Containing random insertions of the maize En/Spm or Ac-Ds transposons in japonica rice cv. Nipponbare, which is the cultivar selected for the genome sequence. A public database for reverse genetics containing sequences of the DNA flanking the insertions will be established, and the sequences will be linked to the rice genome database and the rice genome physical map. This effort should lead to a significant resource for functional genomics in rice, as well as other cereals. The project also provides a training component for undergraduate students from the three participating universities.

1. To establish high efficiency insertional mutagenesis for rice using an engineered transposon system.
2. To generate a population of tagged lines containing independent transposon insertions.
3. To determine the flanking sequences and physical locations for 5,000+ of the transposon insertions, and to generate a searchable database of insertion sites.

Availability of materials and information:

The flanking sequence database will be publicly accessible through a website to be maintained by the Arizona Genomics Institute, which will be linked to the rice genome databases. All of the sequenced insertion lines will be released to the research community by the end of the 3 year funding period.

The project is providing training for postdoctoral fellows and several undergraduate students.
There is a program for training visiting undergraduate students from Grand Valley State University, Michigan selected by Dr. Regina McClinton, and from University of Lousiana-Lafayette, selected by Dr. Caryl Chlan.

Two component transposon tagging systems for rice