Newly Sequenced Canola Genome Could Create Better Plants

The canola plant is used widely in both farming and industry. Now, scientists have managed to sequence this plant's genome, which may pave the way for improved versions of this plant in the future.

Canola is grown across much of Canada and is native to Europe. In addition, the winter crop of this plant is cultivated in Georgia. Canola oil is used for cooking and is prized for its naturally low levels of saturated fat; in addition, the plant is used to produce feed for farm animals.

"This genome sequence opens new doors to accelerating the improvement of canola," said Andrew Paterson, one of the researchers, in a news release. "We can use this knowledge to tailor the plant's flowering time, make it more resistant to disease and improve a myriad of other traits that will make it more profitable for production in Georgia and across the country."

Canola isn't only used to make cooking oil and animal feed, though. It can also be found in lipstick, lip gloss, soap, lotion and even printing ink. With a push to create environmentally friendly products, this means that the canola genome could help create better strains of the plant for biofuel production.

Yet actually piecing together the genome wasn't easy. Canola has one of the most complex genomes among flowering plants, forming thousands of years ago when two plant species, Brassica rapa and
Brassica oleracea, combined in the wild.

"Understanding the genomes of B. rapa and B. oleracea was key to piecing together the canola genome," said Andrew Paterson, one of the researchers. "It's like a genetic love triangle between the three species, with canola sometimes favoring genes from B. rapa or B. oleracea or sometimes both."

The findings are important to agriculture and for future products. Global canola production has grown from the sixth largest oil crop to the second largest over the past 40 years. This new research, though, could make these plants even more useful.

The findings are published in the journal Science.