3 use CXGN
::Page
::FormattingHelpers qw
/info_section_html info_table_html columnar_table_html/;
4 my $page=CXGN
::Page
->new('us_tomato_sequencing.html','html2pl converter');
5 $page->header(('About the US Tomato Sequencing Project') x
2);
8 <p>The US Tomato Sequencing project is part of the larger <a href="/about/tomato_sequencing.pl">International Tomato Sequencing Project</a>, which is in turn part of the broad <a href="/solanaceae-project/index.pl">International Solanaceae Genome (SOL) Project</a>.</p>
9 <!-- <p class="boxbgcolor5"><b>Note:</b> Summer 2010 Internship Positions are available!
10 Please see <a href="#internships">below</a>!<br /></p> -->
14 print info_section_html
( title
=> 'Principal Investigators',
16 info_table_html
(__border
=> 0,
18 columnar_table_html
( headings
=> ['PI','Contact','Organization'],
21 ['Jim Giovannoni','jjg33@cornell.edu','Boyce Thompson Institute for Plant Research (BTI)'],
22 ['Bruce Roe', 'broe@ou.edu', 'University of Oklahoma'],
23 ['Lukas Mueller','lam87@cornell.edu','Boyce Thompson Institute for Plant Research (BTI)'],
24 ['Stephen Stack','sstack@lamar.colostate.edu','Colorado State University'],
25 ['Joyce Van Eck','jv27@cornell.edu','Boyce Thompson Institute for Plant Research (BTI)'],
28 'Project Manager and Educational Outreach Coordinator' => <<EOH,
29 <p>Joyce Van Eck<br />
30 The Boyce Thompson Institute for Plant Research<br />
32 Ithaca, NY 14853-1801<br />
34 e-mail: <a href="mailto:jv27\@cornell.edu">jv27\@cornell.edu</a><br />
35 Phone: 607-254-1284<br />
39 The US Project is funded by the <a href="http://www.nsf.gov">National Science Foundation</a>,
40 Plant Genome Research Program, Grant <a href="http://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward.do?AwardNumber=0421634">#0421634</a>.
45 print info_section_html
( title
=> 'Project Summary',
48 <h4>Scientific objectives and approaches</h4>
50 <p>The tomato genome is comprised of approximately 950 Mb of
51 DNA -- more than 75\% of which is heterochromatin and
52 largely devoid of genes. The majority of genes are found
53 in long contiguous stretches of gene-dense euchromatin
54 located on the distal portions of each chromosome arm. As
55 part of an international consortium, these gene rich
56 regions of the tomato genome will be sequenced using a
57 minimal tiling path approach. The US project is geared
58 towards establishing the foundations for sequencing by
59 establishing 2 additional BAC libraries, obtaining BAC
60 end sequence (400,000 reads) and sequencing a sheared
61 library. The Sol Genomics Network (<a href="/">SGN</a>),
62 an organism database devoted to the genomics of solanaceous species,
63 will be expanded to accommodate and incorporate all of
64 the sequencing, annotation and mapping information for
65 all 12 tomato chromosomes and begin integrating SGN with
66 other databases through a series of shared, common
67 software and algorithms so as to create a network of
68 plant genomic information. Currently, the US has been
69 assigned chromsomes 1, 10 and 11 for full sequencing in a
70 follow-up project.</p>
72 <h4>Broader impact of the project</h4>
74 <p>Sequencing the tomato genome is the cornerstone of a
75 larger international effort: "The International
76 Solanaceae Genome Project". The goal is to establish a
77 network of information, resources and scientists to
78 tackle two of the most significant questions in plant
79 biology/agriculture:</p>
81 <li>How can a common set of
82 genes/proteins give rise to a wide range of
83 morphologically and ecologically distinct organisms that
84 occupy our planet?</li>
85 <li>How can a deeper understanding of
86 the genetic basis of plant diversity be harnessed to
87 better meet the needs of society in an
88 environmentally-friendly and sustainable manner?</li>
90 <p>The family Solanaceae is ideally suited to answer both of
91 these questions for reasons that will be enumerated in
92 this proposal. Immediate application of the tomato genome
93 sequence to other solanaceous species is possible since
94 the tomato genome is connected to these other species by
95 comparative genetic maps and the level of microsynteny
96 appears to be well conserved with respect to gene content
97 and order. Finally, because the Solanaceae represents a
98 distinct and divergent sector of flowering plants,
99 distant from Arabidopsis, Medicago and rice, the tomato
100 genome sequence will provide a rich resource for
101 investigating the forces of gene and genome evolution
102 over long periods of evolutionary time.</p>
106 print info_section_html
(title
=> 'Educational Outreach',
108 <p>The mission of our
109 educational outreach program is to provide
110 research-training opportunities in computational genomics
111 to undergraduates and high school students. By offering
112 hands-on training in computational genomics to these
113 students, we hope to expose them to the nature of
114 genomics information/datasets and the myriad of
115 fascinating biological questions that can be addressed
116 through the application of computational tools to
117 genomics information.</p>
119 <p>The introduction of high capacity DNA sequencing has
120 changed forever the nature of life sciences research. No
121 longer are biologists limited by the ability to collect
122 genetic information, but rather they are limited by the
123 ability to turn this information into discovery.
124 Organizing, storing, curating and extracting biological
125 insights from these data is the central challenge facing
126 biology today. To meet this challenge, we must attract
127 and train students who are mathematically and
128 computationally savvy and yet have attained a level
129 of biological intuition that can lead them to tackling
130 important biological questions. These students will have
131 as part of their undergraduate training hands-on
132 experience in computational genomics. Their research
133 experience will also be supplemented through a number of
134 new course offerings in computational biology now being
135 offered at Cornell (or to be offered soon) as well as a
136 genomics minor that is now being developed at
139 <h4>Student Research Opportunities</h4>
140 <a name="internships"></a>
141 <p>Undergraduate positions are available at the <a href="/">SOL
142 Genomics Network</a>, a database for
143 genomic information of the nightshade plant family, which
144 includes important crop species such as tomato, potato
147 <p>We are seeking highly motivated individuals with strong
148 interests in computers and biology to work on different
149 bioinformatics problems, including web-programming of new
150 tools for plant scientists and designing and implementing
151 relational databases for genomics applications.</p>
153 <p>Knowledge of Perl, SQL, and Linux, BSD or other UNIX-like
154 operating systems are desirable, but not required.</p>
156 <p>Hourly paid positions and honor student positions are
157 available. Work-study students are encouraged to apply.
158 To apply, please send a summary of prior
159 experience/interests, list of relevant course work and
160 names/e-mail addresses of at least 2 references by e-mail
161 to: Joyce Van Eck, <a href="mailto:jv27\@cornell.edu">jv27\@cornell.edu</a>.</p>
163 <!-- <h4>Summer 2010 Internships</h4>
165 <p>Summer internships will be available at the <a href="/">Sol Genomics Network</a> for college undergraduates.</p>
167 <p>Additional information regarding the internship is available in the flyer. <a href="/documents/help/about/internships_2010/internship_poster_2010.pdf">[pdf]</a></li></p>
170 <li>Application form <a href="/documents/help/about/internships_2010/undergrad_app_internship_2010.pdf">[pdf]</a> </li>
171 <li>Recommendation form <a href="/documents/help/about/internships_2010/2010_recommendation_form.pdf">[pdf]</a></li>
174 <p>Application materials are due by March 08, 2010.</p> -->