QTL Mapping and Targeted Sequencing of Genomic Regions Conferring Resistance to Chestnut Blight (Cryphonectria parasitica) and Ink Disease (Phytophthora cinnamomi)

Staton, Margaret

Date: Sunday, January 15, 2012
Time: 2:10 PM

Room: Sunrise

Margaret Staton , Clemson University, Clemson, SC

Bode Olukolu , North Carolina State University

Tatyana Zhebentyayeva , Clemson University, CLEMSON, SC

Eric Fang , Clemson University, Clemson, SC

Lynn P. Tomsho , Center for Comparative Genomics and Bioinformatics, Pennsylvania State University, PA

Stephan Shuster , Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA

Abdelali Barakat , Clemson University, Clemson, SC

Charles Addo-Quaye , Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA

Joe James , Chestnut Return Farms, Seneca, SC

Steven N. Jeffers , Clemson University, Clemson, SC

Thomas Kubisiak , USDA Forest Service

C. Dana Nelson , Southern Institute of Forest Genetics, USDA Forest Service, Saucier, MS

Albert G. Abbott , Department of Genetics and Biochemistry, Clemson University, Clemson, SC

John E. Carlson , Penn State University, University Park, PA

The restoration of the American Chestnut (Castanea dentata) requires the production of genotypes that are resistant to the Chestnut blight, Cryphonectria parasitica. An additional source of Chestnut death in the southern range of the United States is ink disease, Phytophthora cinnamomi. QTL mapping has yielded regions of interest in the Chinese Chestnut (Castanea mollissima) genome for resistance to both of these fungal pathogens. The physical map for Chinese Chestnut, based on HICF fingerprinting of two BAC libraries, was previously anchored to the genetic map. Manually curating these two maps in our areas of interest has enabled us to select a minimum tiling path of BACs spanning the QTL regions. For the three Cryphonectria- resistance QTL regions, sequencing has yielded a diversity of candidate genes for further study. Genes are being identified by transcript mapping and comparative genomic strategies with other trees species such as peach. The strategy of QTL mapping, BAC pool sequencing and candidate gene discovery is proving to be effective for unraveling the genetic underpinnings of resistance for two of the main fungal pathogens for American Chestnut.

W297 QTL Mapping and Targeted Sequencing of Genomic Regions Conferring Resistance to Chestnut Blight (Cryphonectria parasitica) and Ink Disease (Phytophthora cinnamomi)