Evolution, Domestication, Dissemination, US Commercialization, and Molecular Characterization of a Crop Species
Due: February 7, 2008, in class; (note: 25% penalty for late papers)
Whenever you work with a species, it is very important to understand the history of that species. When you are working with a crop species, it is important to understand the events that lead to the materials that are used in a breeding program. Finally, whenever applying molecular techniques, it is important to understand the molecular tools that are available.
The purpose of this mini-review is for you to become very acquainted with one crop species. You can study any species, but it probably make sense to work on the species upon which you are doing your research. In this review you are describe:
- The Evolution of the Species: What is the taxonomic relationship of this species to other species in its genera and family?
- The Domestication of the Species: There is a distinct difference between wild and domesticated species of a plant. Describe these differences, and what is understood about the genetic control of these traits. Are there particular races of this species that relate to the domestication?
- Dissemination of the Domesticated Lines: Crop plants all have a center of origin. First, describe the center of origin and how that was determined. What was the dissemination pathway of this crop throughout the world? How did this crop end up in the United States? You should pay particular attention the races and how they were distributed throughout the world.
- US Commercialization of the Crop: Each crop species has been commercialized in the United States. Therefore, at some point in time, the crop was brought into the US, and plant breeding efforts began with that materials. Subsequently other materials were introgressed into this original material, and new modified germplasm was created. Describe all of these events, and provide experimental results that used molecular techniques to describe the diversity of the original materials and the "current" breeding materials.
- Molecular Characterization of the Species: You should conclude your review by discussing a )the number of chromosomes and genome size of the the species; b) the type and size of molecular marker maps; c) the nature of the parents used to develop these maps and why the parents were chosen; and d) several examples of the application of molecular markers for genetic studies with this species.
You must make sure that your review is current. I will check to see if you are using the most current literature. Simply using a version of this assignment from a previous student will result in a low grade. Research has been abundant in this field in the past few years. Therefore it is best that you prepare a very current review.
Format
- Length: Body: 5 pages (maximum); title and name should be at the top of the first page
- References: A separate reference page is required. Select a journal and use the reference style from that journal. The maximum number of WWW sources is one.
- Spacing:0.5" indent for each paragraph; each paragraph single spaced; a double-space between each paragraph
- Printing: Laser
- Margins: One inch on each side. (Note: MS Word default is 1.25 inch; if you do not know how to adjust the margins seek help from somone.)
- Font: Times Roman, 12 pt