Plant & Animal Genomes XIV Conference

January 14-18, 2006
Town & Country Convention Center
San Diego, CA

MaizeGDB, The Maize Genetics And Genomics Database

Carolyn J. Lawrence¹ , Mary L. Schaeffer² , Trent E. Seigfried¹ , Darwin A. Campbell¹

¹  USDA-ARS @ Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa, 50014,USA

²  USDA-ARS @ The University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri, 65211,USA

MaizeGDB (http://www.maizegdb.org) is the database that houses data and analysis tools crafted to suit the needs of the community of maize geneticists. Among the data sets included in MaizeGDB are sequences; detailed genetic, physical, recombination nodule, and cytological maps; molecular markers; and a wealth of other datatypes. MaizeGDB includes integrated tools for map comparisons, sequence similarity searches, and comparisons with and links to other databases including Gramene, PlantGDB, NCBI, and others. MaizeGDB also provides web-based community curation tools that enable researchers to edit and annotate their own data and to enter new data into MaizeGDB directly. In addition, workers at MaizeGDB provide informatics support for maize community initiatives including the annual Maize Genetics Conference and community-wide workshops. This computer demonstration aims to introduce MaizeGDB to researchers who have not yet become familiar with the database and to educate maize geneticists on how to contribute their data for long-term accessibility.