Plant & Animal Genome VI Conference

W63

TOWARDS CHARACTERISING THE MAIZE GENOME VIA A "CONSORTIUM EFFORT"

IACR-Long Ashton Research Station, University of Bristol, Bristol, BS18 9AF, UK

IACR-Long Ashton Research Station coordinates two programmes which are both designed to help map the maize genome: In the first, $3 million programme, the European Union, under its Framework IV Biotechnology Initiative has recently funded 10 laboratories (five academic and five industries) to: 1. Generate a maize BAC library to complement the existing YAC library, 2. Generate high density AFLP maps around several agronomically important genes and 3. Develop the tools required to identify genes via a mapped based approach. Further information on the "Map Maize" programme can be found here. In the second programme, several seed companies are working together with IACR-Long Ashton to develop a considerable number of mapped maize SSR primer sets which are also being characterised on 23 inbred lines. It is envisaged that as this programme progresses, a proportion of the primer sets will be submitted to the MaizeDB under the "mmc" (maize microsatellite consortium) acronym. Although both of these programmes are relatively small, especially in comparison to recent plant genome initiatives in the USA, they nether the less show that is possible for academic laboratories to act as a focal point in bringing together academic and industrial interests in a mutually beneficial way.