Friday, 22 February 2013 at 11:45am
** Note the later-than-usual starting time **
Room 1400 Biomedical and Physical Sciences Bldg.
Refreshments at 11:30
Speaker: Nathan Springer, College of Biological Sciences, University of Minnesota
Title: Contribution of Genetic and Epigenetic Variation to Diversity in Maize
Abstract:
Geneticists often think of different individuals of the same species as having highly similar genomes. However, there is
evidence that the structure, and modifications, of the genomes of different individuals can highly vary. I will describe
evidence that shows the dynamic nature of the maize genome and extensive variation in gene content among different maize
genotypes. I will also describe the studies of several chromatin modifications in maize including DNA methylation and
histone methylation (H3K27me3). There is evidence that variation in these chromatin modifications is controlled by both
genetic and epigenetic factors. We have been studying the stability and heritability of these marks to understand how the
epigenome is inherited and how it is influenced by environmental factors.