First draft of transgenic papaya genome yields many fruits

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Papaya is one of the most nutritious fruits known. The new study sheds light on its evolution and that of other flowering plants. Credit: Photo courtesy of James Carr
Papaya is one of the most nutritious fruits known. The new study sheds light on its evolution and that of other flowering plants. Credit: Photo courtesy of James Carr

A broad collaboration of research institutions in the U.S. and China has produced a first draft of the papaya genome. This draft, which spells out more than 90 percent of the plant’s gene coding sequence, sheds new light on the evolution of flowering plants. And because it involves a genetically modified plant, the newly sequenced papaya genome offers the most detailed picture yet of the genetic changes that make the plant resistant to the papaya ringspot virus. The findings appear as the cover article in the journal Nature.


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