Phenotypic Characterization of the USDA WRRC Brachypodium distachyon T-DNA Collection

The model grass Brachypodium distachyon (Brachypodium) is an excellent system for studying the basic biology underlying traits relevant to the use of grasses as food, forage and energy crops. To add to the growing collection of Brachypodium resources available to plant scientists, we have generated a collection of > 20,000 Brachypodium T-DNA lines and have tagged more than 9,000 genes.  We have confirmed the co-segregation of specific phenotypes with identified insertions for a number of lines and have begun complementation tests to demonstrate that the loss of function of the tagged gene is responsible for the observed phenotypes. The High Resolution Plant Phenomics Centre (Canberra, Australia) has conducted high-throughput phenotyping for a collection of 600 homozygous T-DNA mutant lines. Visible imagery (plant morphology, biovolume, growth rate, and color), chlorophyll fluorescence (quantum yield), and infrared thermography (canopy temperature and stomatal regulation) data will be used to select additional candidates for detailed phenotyping. Additionally, in collaboration with Lawrence Berkeley Laboratories, a new method for high-throughput Synchrotron FTIR is being used for analyses of powdered stem material of selected T-DNA mutants. Information about the Western Regional Research Center Brachypodium insertional mutant population is available on a searchable website (http://brachypodium.pw.usda.gov) designed to provide researchers with a means to order T-DNA lines with mutations in genes of interest.