BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Genetic factors that influence interindividual variation in levels of plasma homocysteine, a risk factor for vascular disease, are not fully understood. We performed linkage analyses to identify genomic regions that influence homocysteine levels in blacks and non-Hispanic whites. METHODS Subjects (n=2283) belonged to hypertensive sibships and included 1319 blacks (63+/-...

Tar spot complex (TSC) is one of the most destructive foliar diseases of maize ( L.) in tropical and subtropical areas of Central and South America, causing significant grain yield losses when weather conditions are conducive. To dissect the genetic architecture of TSC resistance in maize, association mapping, in conjunction with linkage mapping, was conducted on an association-mapping panel an...

A consensus genetic map for Pinus taeda (loblolly pine) and Pinus elliottii (slash pine) was constructed by merging three previously published P. taeda maps with a map from a pseudo-backcross between P. elliottii and P. taeda. The consensus map positioned 3856 markers via genotyping of 1251 individuals from four pedigrees. It is the densest linkage map for a conifer to date. Average marker spac...

An SSR-based linkage map was constructed in Brassica rapa. It includes 113 SSR, 87 RFLP, and 62 RAPD markers. It consists of 10 linkage groups with a total distance of 1005.5 cM and an average distance of 3.7 cM. SSRs are distributed throughout the linkage groups at an average of 8.7 cM. Synteny between B. rapa and a model plant, Arabidopsis thaliana, was analyzed. A number of small genomic seg...

Passeriformes are the largest order of birds and one of the most widely studied groups in evolutionary biology and ecology. Until recently genomic tools in passerines relied on chicken genomic resources. Here we report the construction and analysis of a whole-genome linkage map for the zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata) using a 354-bird pedigree. The map contains 876 SNPs dispersed across 45 lin...

We have completed a genome-wide linkage scan for healthy aging using data collected from a family study, followed by fine-mapping by association in a separate population, the first such attempt reported. The family cohort consisted of parents of age 90 or above and their children ranging in age from 50 to 80. As a quantitative measure of healthy aging, we used a frailty index, called FI34, base...

The cultivated strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa) is an octoploid (2n = 8x = 56) of the Rosaceae family whose genomic architecture is still controversial. Several recent studies support the AAA'A'BBB'B' model, but its complexity has hindered genetic and genomic analysis of this important crop. To overcome this difficulty and to assist genome-wide analysis of F. × ananassa, we constructed an integ...

An understanding of the genetic influences on hypertension would help unravel the pathophysiology of this complex disorder and improve our understanding of causal mechanisms. Contemporary technology makes it possible to examine enough genetic markers to support a generalized search across the entire genome for candidate regions. In the present study, a family set was recruited from southwest Ni...

As with many organisms of evolutionary interest, the Hawaiian cricket Laupala genome is not well characterized genetically. Mapping such an unexplored genome therefore presents challenges not often faced in model genetic organisms and not well covered in the literature. We discuss the evolutionary merits of Laupala as a model for speciation studies involving prezygotic change, our choice of mar...