Showing papers by "José M. Jiménez-Gómez published in 2009"

Sequence diversity in three tomato species: SNPs, markers, and molecular evolution.

Abstract: Tomato species are of significant agricultural and ecological interest, with cultivated tomato being among the most common vegetable crops grown. Wild tomato species are native to diverse habitats in South America and show great morphological and ecological diversity that has proven useful in breeding programs. However, relatively little is known about nucleotide diversity between tomato species. Until recently limited sequence information was available for tomato, preventing genome-wide evolutionary analyses. Now, an extensive collection of tomato expressed sequence tags (ESTs) is available at the SOL Genomics Network (SGN). This database holds sequences from several species, annotated with quality values, assembled into unigenes, and tested for homology against other genomes. Despite the importance of polymorphism detection for breeding and natural variation studies, such analyses in tomato have mostly been restricted to cultivated accessions. Importantly, previous polymorphisms surveys mostly ignored the linked meta-information, limiting functional and evolutionary analyses. The current data in SGN is thus an under-exploited resource. Here we describe a cross-species analysis taking full-advantage of available information.

Plant research accelerates along the (bio)informatics superhighway: symposium on plant sensing, response and adaptation to the environment.

Abstract: The Keystone Symposium on Plant Sensing, Response and Adaptation to the Environment took place between 11 and 16 January 2009, at Big Sky, Montana, USA, and was organized by S.A. Kay & J. Chory. ![][1] See Glossary for abbreviations used in this article In spite of the fanfare surrounding the two‐hundredth anniversary of the birth of Charles Darwin, and the one‐hundred and fiftieth anniversary of his most celebrated book ‘ On the Origin of Species ’ (Darwin, 1859), many people would still be surprised to learn that Darwin wrote a nearly 600 page book entitled ‘ The Power of Movement in Plants ’ (Darwin, 1880). As most plants have their location fixed as soon as their roots enter the soil, non‐specialists might wonder how much movement plants can make. However, movement is not limited to locomotion, and many of the movements studied by Darwin probably evolved in response to the unique challenges imposed by the rooted habit. Unable to change location, plants have developed exquisite abilities to sense, respond to and adapt to their local environment. One example that captured Darwin's attention is the navigation of the radicle (root) tip through the complex soil environment to optimize water and nutrient acquisition. He stated, “It is hardly an exaggeration to say that the tip of the radicle thus endowed, and having the power of directing the movements of the adjoining parts, acts like the brain of one of the lower animals[…].” These root‐growth movements were but one of many environmental responses discussed by plant biologists gathered at the recent Keystone Symposium on Plant Sensing, Response and Adaptation to the Environment. Root growth is controlled by gravity, water and nutrient acquisition; whereas growth of the aerial shoot is regulated primarily by the light environment. Various photoreceptors allow plants to judge light intensity, direction … [1]: /embed/graphic-1.gif