Abstract

Although soybean is one of the US's major crops, genomics research has lagged behind other major crops such as corn. To begin to understand the orginization of the soybean genome and to prepare soybean for genome sequencing, we will create a physical map integrated with the available genetic map. A physical map is the basic building block used to clone important agricultural genes and to sequence segment of genomes or entire genomes. In addition to development of an integrated genetic-physical map, DNA sequencing will be done to assess the micro-structure of the soybean genome at several locations. The soybean genome is highly duplicated; that is, any particular region may be present multiple times which complicates genome mapping and sequencing. We will target and sequence the duplicated regions to ascertain the level of conservation between duplicated regions and to determine how to overcome the difficulty posted by duplications within the genome. This project combines the strengths of researchers at Purdue University in Indiana, the Universities of Missouri-Columbia and Arizona, USDA- ARS/Iowa State University, and the National Center for Genome Resources in New Mexico.

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