CAMbase: a Resource for CAM Plant Genomics

Crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM) is a physiological adaptation of plants that live in environments under stress conditions, in particular, drought and heat stress.  This specialized mode of photosynthesis facilitates increased water-use efficiency (WUE) in the plant, which has prompted the increase in research to define the genetic elements of CAM.  To assist this effort, CAMbase is designed to be a versatile and comprehensible web portal focused on CAM plant species genomics data for integrative utilization of the increasingly large collection of CAM plant genomics resources.  This web portal incorporates tools supporting the use of data produced by the CAM biodesign project, as well as publicly available data.  It features an instance of WebApollo with Jbrowse for the Kalanchoe laxiflora genome to facilitate community annotation updating.  Also, an instance of an eFP browser is available for comparative analysis of time-course gene expression in K. laxiflora leaves.  As more genomics data are being produced in the CAM biodesign project, they will be incorporated for further development of the portal, such as allowing the visualization of gene expression between CAM plant species in the eFP browser all at once.