Toward Sequencing the Cotton Genome

Sequencing of angiosperm (flowering plant) genomes has always been difficult despite the rapidly decreasing sequencing costs and innovative technologies. Generating large sequence data and assembling complex genomes de novo represents a challenge to scientists. To this end, the sequencing of the cotton genome still remains a daunting task. A coalition of international genome scientists has developed strategies for sequencing the cotton genomes.

Genomic resources are available to aid scientists sequence the cotton genome. Currently, more than 350,000 cotton sequences are stored in the GenBank. In addition, the order in which cotton belongs (Malvales) is the nearest relative to Arabidopsis outside its own order in which genetic and physical maps have been described. A total of 62% sequenced cotton loci had matches in Arabidopsis. Since species representative within the Gossypium genus vary in the size of their haploid genome as well as in the number of their chromosome sets, it will be important to consider which species will be sequenced. The sequenced cotton genome will not only help in breeding improved varieties but also stimulate fundamental research on genome evolution, cell differentiation and development, cellulose biosynthesis, molecular determinants of cell wall biogenesis and genome polyploidization (production of several copies).

Read the article published by Plant Physiology at http://www.plantphysiol.org/cgi/content/full/145/4/1303The Cotton Genome Sequencing White Paper can be found at http://algodon.tamu.edu/sequencing/docs/2WhitePaper12_11_2006.pdf.