USDA's Plant Genome Research Program.

Abstract

Biotechnology will provide U.S. farmers with another green revolution. The United States Department of Agriculture has put together the Plant Genome Research Program as a coordinated multi-agency effort within the department to help develop the "new agriculture." The Cooperative State Research Service is managing the program's competitive research grants. Research topics include high- and low-resolution chromosomal maps; the isolation and transfer of economically important genes; and new technology developments. The Agricultural Research Service is the lead agency for the Plant Genome Research Program and coordinates data collection and information management resources for the program. Five species groups are collaborating in the database development effort for the program by defining the user needs for their species and collecting and evaluating their species data for the database. A central database for the Plant Genome Research Program is under development at the National Agricultural Library (NAL) and ultimately will contain data for as many as seventy-one different plant species. NAL will provide user access via Internet, dial-up modem, and, at a later date, a CD-ROM product.