BIOCOMPLEXITY--INCUBATION ACTIVITY: Genome Evolution and Macroevolutionary Diversification in Green Plants

Washington State University, Pullman WA

Investigators

Abstract

DEB-0083659 Pamela S. Soltis Drs. Pamela S. Soltis and Douglas E. Soltis of Washington State University were awarded, through the Biocomplexity Incubation Activity Program, a grant to coordinate scientific discussions and propose future research into the complexity of genome diversification in plants. The green plants represent one of the largest branches on the Tree of Life, with more than 1/2 million species. Plant nuclear genomes, which vary tremendously in size, organization, and structure, are the products of nearly a billion years of evolutionary history. Recent breakthroughs in the study of plant phylogeny, as well as new developments in the study of genes and genomes, are being integrated to examine genome diversification and complexity over vast evolutionary time. The primary goal of this Incubation Activity is to foster interdisciplinary research to facilitate a new synthesis of plant genomics and plant evolutionary biology. Genome doubling, a process that has been responsible for generating the majority of plant diversity on Earth, including the origins of most crop plants and 17 of the 18 "world's worst weeds", apparently leads to complex genomic interactions that may ultimately be responsible for new chromosomal and gene arrangements and novel patterns of gene expression. Soltis and Soltis have assembled a core of researchers with extensive expertise in plant phylogeny, analysis of gene and genome evolution, mechanisms of genome evolution, computation, and bioinformatics. This group will (1) explore the role of genome doubling in the diversification of plants and (2) investigate the patterns and mechanisms of genome evolution following genome doubling. The group anticipates publication of multi-authored original research contributions, initial software releases, and development of a full-scale Biocomplexity Research Proposal during the two-year funding period of this grant.