PROSPECTS
The past year was very productive for us.
On the one hand, the genomes (xx) of almost all Diplacus varieties are now available online: https://blast.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/Blast.cgi. (e.g. SRX6077453)
This genome information benefits our search for more like functional genomics, which will be the basics to understand a plant living system evolutionarily.
On the other hand, several Diplacus plants in transition zones (formerly hybrid zones, e.g., at Santa Susana Pass and Santa Cruz Island) have also been sequenced and have already been statistically analyzed see:https://academic.oup.com/evlett/article/7/5/293/7190212
The conditions are excellent for our needs. A plant in transition changes its phenotype and genotype simultaneously. Thus, such (marked) plants or populations can be genomically analyzed again after about four to fifteen years, and the possible difference is what has changed in the genome(s) in the meantime.
- We are focusing primarily on altering short tandem reads within the introns.
We are thinking in particular of our T-plants T27 & T30. We still have frozen collected leaf material from these plants from 20 years ago and now have cloned plants in our greenhouse for genomic comparison.
In addition, the red-flowering Santa Ana variety is thought to have a genome like SRX19694291, a derivative of Diplacus calycinus (not longiflorus)
The red-flowering Diplacus
plants on
Santa Catalina Island has not yet been genomically analyzed to complete the genome collection.
We are glad to see this mentioned in this recent publication about "speciation." The insight into those genomic structures will spur new theories. However, after all, it will validate the old theories. - A quick paradigm shift could happen in a very short time.
We like the expression "evolutionary forces".
Future goals to clarify the evolutionary role of short tandem repeats include the use of advanced sequencing methods. By utilizing long-read sequencing, researchers can obtain more comprehensive haplotype information. Additionally, employing advanced deep sequencing techniques could provide statistical insights into the mutation rates within specific introns. The innovative CRISPR-Cas gene-editing system can help identify which genes contain regulating relevant introns and which do not.
Although we will not be doing any of these in the near future, we would appreciate it if any lab group was focusing on this.
12-09-24 rolfy