BARLEY FUNCTIONAL GENOMICS

Department of Agronomy and Plant Genetics, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN 55108

Gene function can be assessed by various approaches. One approach involves characterizing knockout mutations in the gene of interest. This approach is based on the idea that removing gene function from an organism will reveal the process it functions in. A second approach is to determine the expression of the gene of interest. Determining the timing, tissue and level of gene expression provides clues to gene function. In addition, characterizing transgenic plants carrying overexpressed and underexpressed genes can provide insight into the role specific genes play. Finally, comparing the sequence of a gene to the sequence of genes from other organisms whose functions have been determined can also provide clues regarding gene function. Using the genomic tools of high-throughput sequencing, microarray analysis, plant transformation, mutants, and transposon tagging, functional genomics in barley can be addressed. This presentation will describe the approaches for conducting barley functional genomics and the available tools in barley.