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CAHNRS Department of Horticulture Genomics Lab

Sweet Cherry Genome Project

 

cherries

Sweet Cherry Genome Sequencing Consortium

The blueprint for all biological processes in an sweet cherry is coded by its genome. However, due to its enormous size and complexity it is impossible to access this information all at once. The information can only be accessed in small increments, which necessitates piecing together the fragmented information. To solve the genomic puzzle we plan to capture its genome in about 12,000 manageable pieces called BAC clones. Each clone covers about 130,000 nucleotides each. In order to fit the genomic pieces in a continuum we plan to access additional genome information using 454 GS FLX Ttianium technology. Random sequences generated de novo using this platform will be combined with sequences generated from BAC clones to develop a draft assembly of the sweet cherry genome.

We have initiated sequencing the Stella cultivar as it is the parent of most self-compatible sweet cherry varieties in production today. We have already constructed a 6X BAC library from this genotype. Pooled BAC sequencing is currently underway.

The sweet cherry consortium consists of WSU researchers Amit Dhingra, Nnadozie Oraguzie, Ananth Kalyanaraman and Matthew Whiting; Todd Einhorn, Oregon State University; Herman Silva, Universidad de Chile, Chile; Lee Ann Meisel, Universidad Andres Bello, Chile; Eduardo Gratacos and Levi Mansur, Universidad Católica de Valparaíso, Chile.