The Rice Genome at Ten: Helping to Solve the 9-Billion People Question

World agriculture got a major boost with the completion of the rice genome sequence in December 2004 and subsequent publication in August 2005. To date, the map-based sequence of the japonica rice cultivar Nipponbare remains as the only monocot genome that has been sequenced to a high-quality level. It has become the reference sequence for understanding the diversity among thousands of rice cultivars and its wild relatives. It has also provided great insights in understanding other major cereal crops such as maize, wheat, barley and sorghum that comprised the food source for the entire human race. On the agricultural front, the rice genome sequence enhances the characterization of many agronomic traits in rice that allows breeders to incorporate highly desirable traits such as high productivity, and the successful breeding of cultivars which could be grown in a wide range of environments. It is highly expected that subsequent sequencing efforts on analysis of the genome including a wide array of rice germplasm throughout the world will provide the platform for propelling the next green revolution and helping to solve the 9-billion people question.