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John Innes Centre

Technology and Resource Development

Antirrhinum

Bee with a magenta coloured flower

Bees that pollinate snapdragons prefer magenta or yellow coloured flowers to flower colours such as orange

This important model plant has about 10 known endogenous transposable elements representing 2 different classes and one known family of retrotransposon. The copy numbers of these elements vary from a few to up to 40 in the case of Tam3. The excision rates of these elements varies somewhat with temperature, with Tam3 excision responding dramatically, and Tam3 excision can also be controlled genetically. The transposons have been used as mutagens and a large number of mutants obtained, classified and recorded. They are maintained as a collection of 300-400 lines, many of which are available to the research community.

A PCR screening service to detect insertions in specific genes is provided. In the last year 28 requests for lines and 13 requests for PCR screens were met. These genetic resources are unique, represent knowledge accumulated over many years, and will continue to be provided. Future developments include incorporating data into a searchable database.

Contact: Lucy Copsey (lucy.copsey@jic.ac.uk) for access to these lines.

Arabidopsis

A Ds gene trap population comprising 30,000 independent insertions is being generated as part of the IGF Program. The flanking sequences of gene trap and SLAT lines will be obtained. Mis-expression lines are being generated that use an enhancer-trap to drive expression of a lexA-based transcription factor. This acts in trans to direct novel patterns of expression of introduced genes.

The Arabidopsis transposon insertion site database relates the flanking sequences of SLAT line and gene trap insertions to genes, and describes phenotypes and expression patterns in a searchable format.

This database forms part of the UK GARNET resource. Individual lines can be obtained from the Nottingham Arabidopsis Stock Centre.

Imaging

Imaging services are operated on behalf of JIC scientists and with collaborators. The service comprises (EM, SEM, confocal, and associated systems).

Contact: Kim Findlay (email: kim.findlay@jic.ac.uk).

Bioinformatics

The Cell & Developmental Biology Department will contribute to developing databases and query languages for all aspects of its high-throughput analyses, particularly gene expression patterns, spatial analyses such as subcellular locations of proteins, and to capture laboratory data. This will be carried out as part of the proposed PLANET initiative.