Fourteen Spanish research groups have obtained the first draft of the genome sequence of melon ( Cucumis melo ), a species with a long genetic history.
The analysis was carried out within the framework of the MELONOMICS project, funded by Genoma España. The first results obtained reveal that the melon has a genome of about 450 megabytes distributed in 12 chromosomes, and that it contains around 26,000 genes, a number similar to that of the human genome . "The main objectives of melon genetic improvement, within the framework of the Melonomics project, are to identify varieties resistant to diseases, such as those produced by fungi, and to contribute to improving the quality of the fruit?" Explained Pere Puigdomenech, scientific coordinator of the project.
The news coincides with the announcement, by a consortium in China and the United States, of the sequencing of the cucumber genome, another vegetable of the cucurbit family, to which melon, watermelon and pumpkin also belong. The work, which reveals that the plant has 245 million base pairs , is published this week in the online edition of the journal Nature genetics . Until now, only the complete genome of six plants was known : Arabidopsis thaliana , poplar , grapevine , papaya, and rice and sorghum crops.
