TOWARD A SUCCESSFUL MULTINATIONAL CROP PLANT GENOME INITIATIVE

Plant genome research is needed as the foundation for an entirely new level of efficiency and success in the application of genetics and bre eding to crop plants and products from crop plants. Genetic improvemen ts in crop plants beyond current capabilities are needed to meet the g rowing world demand not only for more food, but also a greater diversi ty of food, higher-quality food, and safer food, produced on less land , while conserving soil, water, and genetic resources. Plant biology r esearch, which is poised for dramatic advances, also depends fundament ally on plant genome research. The current Arabidopsis Genome Project has proved of immediate value to plant biology research, but a much gr eater effort is needed to ensure the full benefits of plant biology an d especially plant genome research to agriculture. International coope ration is critical, both because genome projects are too large for any one country and the information forthcoming is of benefit to the worl d and not just the countries that do the work. Recent research on gras s genomes has revealed that, because of extensive senteny and colinear ity within linkage groups that make up the chromosomes, new informatio n on the genome of one grass can be used to understand the genomes and predict the location of genes on chromosomes of the other grasses. Ge nome research applied to grasses as a group thereby can increase the e fficiency and effectiveness of breeding for improvement of each member of this group, which includes wheat, corn, and rice, the world's thre e most important sources of food.