FmMDb: a versatile database of foxtail millet markers for millets and bioenergy grasses research

PLoS One. 2013 Aug 12;8(8):e71418. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0071418. eCollection 2013.

Abstract

The prominent attributes of foxtail millet (Setaria italica L.) including its small genome size, short life cycle, inbreeding nature, and phylogenetic proximity to various biofuel crops have made this crop an excellent model system to investigate various aspects of architectural, evolutionary and physiological significances in Panicoid bioenergy grasses. After release of its whole genome sequence, large-scale genomic resources in terms of molecular markers were generated for the improvement of both foxtail millet and its related species. Hence it is now essential to congregate, curate and make available these genomic resources for the benefit of researchers and breeders working towards crop improvement. In view of this, we have constructed the Foxtail millet Marker Database (FmMDb; http://www.nipgr.res.in/foxtail.html), a comprehensive online database for information retrieval, visualization and management of large-scale marker datasets with unrestricted public access. FmMDb is the first database which provides complete marker information to the plant science community attempting to produce elite cultivars of millet and bioenergy grass species, thus addressing global food insecurity.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Databases, Genetic*
  • Internet
  • Setaria Plant / physiology*
  • User-Computer Interface

Grants and funding

This work was financially supported by the core grant of National Institute of Plant Genome Research (NIPGR), New Delhi, India. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.