Methods to identify evolutionarily significant changes in polynucleotide and polypeptide sequences in domesticated plants and animals
OwnerWalter Messier, James M. Sikelainventors
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
The present invention provides methods for identifying polynucleotide and polypeptide sequences which may be associated with commercially or aesthetically relevant traits in domesticated plants or animals. The methods employ comparison of homologous genes from the domesticated organism and its ancestor to identify evolutionarily significant changes. Sequences thus identified may be useful in enhancing commercially or aesthetically desirable traits in domesticated organisms.
Claims34
A method for identifying a polynucleotide sequence encoding a polypeptide of a domesticated organism, wherein said polypeptide is or is suspected of being associated with a commercially or aesthetically relevant trait that is unique, enhanced or altered in the domesticated organism as compared to a wild ancestor of said domesticated organism, comprising the steps of:
- a) comparing polypeptide-coding nucleotide sequences of said domesticated organism to polypeptide-coding nucleotide sequences of said wild ancestor;
- and
- b) selecting a polynucleotide sequence in the domesticated organism that contains a nucleotide change as compared to a corresponding sequence in the wild ancestor, wherein said change is evolutionarily significant, whereby the domestic organism's polynucleotide sequence is identified.
A method for identifying an evolutionarily significant change in a polypeptide-coding polynucleotide sequence of a domesticated organism comprising the steps of:
- a) comparing polypeptide-coding polynucleotide sequences of said domesticated organism to corresponding sequences of a wild ancestor of said domesticated organism;
- and
- b) selecting a polynucleotide sequence in said domesticated organism that contains a nucleotide change as compared to the corresponding sequence of the wild ancestor, wherein the change is evolutionarily significant and the polynucleotide is associated with a commercially or aesthetically relevant trait in the domesticated organism, whereby the evolutionarily significant change in the polynucleotide is identified.
A method for large scale sequence comparison between polypeptide-coding nucleotide sequences of a domesticated organism and polypeptide-coding sequences from a wild ancestor of said domesticated organism, wherein the domesticated organism polypeptide confers or is suspected of conferring a commercially or aesthetically relevant trait that is unique, enhanced or altered in the domesticated organism as compared to the wild ancestor, comprising:
- a) aligning the domesticated organism sequences with corresponding sequences from the wild ancestor according to sequence homology;
- and
- b) identifying any nucleotide changes within the domesticated organism sequences as compared to the homologous sequences from the wild ancestor.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.