DMMC Course MODEL SYSTEMS IN BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH: SCIENTIFIC BREAKTHROUGHS
1145-1300 Thursday 30 March 2006. UCD Conway Institute Seminar Room 2
Arabidopsis
thaliana: eukaryotic genetics and functional genomics
Technical Spotlight: knock-out and gene/enhancer trap lines
Dr
Charles Spillane, University College Cork
Arabidopsis thaliana is a small flowering plant that is the most widely used model organism in plant biology. Arabidopsis is a member of the mustard (Brassicaceae) family, which includes cultivated species such as cabbage and radish. Compared to all other plant species, Arabidopsis offers significant advantages for research in plant genetics and molecular biology, particularly since its genome has been fully sequenced. After 40 years of study, a large and growing portfolio of powerful research tools and approaches are now at the disposal of the Arabidopsis research community. The growing Arabidopsis research community consists of at least 15,000 researchers in over 5000 academic, government and industry laboratories worldwide. Arabidopsis is fundamentally similar to other plants. By analyzing the structure and functions of genes and metabolic networks in Arabidopsis thaliana, we are laying the groundwork for studying the comparative biology of all other plant species.
Spillane Lab web page: http://www.ucc.ie/spillane/
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