Summary: SGI - Feature Story: Papaya Genome Sequencing Project Opens Vast Ar... http://www.sgi.com/company_info/features/2007/papaya.html
1 of 4 3/5/2008 12:31 PM
Papaya Genome Sequencing Project Opens Vast Array of
Agricultural, Scientific and Culinary Opportunities
The fifth largest crop in Hawaii, papaya was almost wiped out by the papaya ringspot virus a decade
ago. Genetically modifying the papaya to create a ringspot-resistant transgenic or "hermaphrodite"
variety saved the papaya from extinction on the islands. The papaya is now the first fruit and the
first transgenic crop to be sequenced, helping to pave the way for international export of
genetically modified fruits and vegetables as well as opening up a surprising number of fields of
Two years ago, researchers at the University of Hawaii (UH), Dr. Takashi Sugimura, Maui Super
Computer Center (MHPCC), Dr. Stan Saiki, Pacific Telehealth and Technology Hui, Dr. Ray Ming,
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign then at Hawaii Agricultural Research Center (HARC), Dr.
Paul Moore, USDA Pacific Basin Agricultural Research Center together with Dr. Lei Wang, Nankai
University began the Hawaii Papaya Genome Project to map papaya genes to improve the efficiency