Genomic Resources for North American Hardwoods

The hardwood forests of Eastern North America are complex biological systems, covering millions of acres, providing habitat for wildlife, long-term carbon sequestration, fiber, recreational uses, and other essential services. The sustainability of these forests is increasingly threatened by forest health issues such as exotic pests, diseases, invasive plants, climate change and fragmentation.  In this project, researchers at seven universities are collaborating to develop genomic resources and genetic tools for a broad taxonomic distribution of hardwood tree species, including northern red oak (Quercus rubra), black walnut (Juglans nigra), yellow poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera), sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua), honey locust (Gleditsia triacanthos), sugar maple (Acer saccharum), blackgum (Nyssa sylvatica), and green ash (Fraxinus pennsylvanica).  We are producing expressed gene sequence databases, DNA markers, genetic linkage maps, and reference populations with an emphasis on tools for assessing genetic variation in growth, adaptation, and responses to abiotic environmental stresses, including heat, cold, water, and ozone stresses.  An update is provided on the genomic resources currently available through the project website (www.hardwoodgenomics.org).  Sequence data will also be deposited in GenBank, and the genetic linkage maps and associated marker data will be available at the Dendrome database (http://dendrome.ucdavis.edu/). This project is supported by grant # TRPGR IOS-1025974 from the National Science Foundation’s Plant Genome Research Program.