# positions[].organizations[].parent[].label
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences

# overview
Most of our work in the last few years has focused on manipulating starch biosynthesis in plants. This has led to the identification of a number of specific DNA polymorphisms that have a profound impact on the structure and functional properties of starch granules. Interestingly, the effect of some of these polymorphisms is temperature sensitive. For example, a key G/T polymorphism at the 5' leader intron splice site of rice granule bound starch synthase has little phenotypic effect at 18 ?C, but at 25 ?C it activates an alternate splice site that results in a premature open reading frame. At 32 ?C, a third nonconsensus TT/GT splice site is activated. This type of temperature sensitivity is one of the key factors responsible for the complex genotype x environment relationships seen in starch structure and represents a good target for manipulation via biotechnology. We have also worked with an industrial partner and a breeder to develop the first commercial rice varieties specifically tailored to work with a new type of processing technology and to identify the genes responsible for optimal raw material/process interactions. Other work in the laboratory is focused on the identification and manipulation of DNA polymorphisms associated with disease resistance and with herbicide resistance in the wild relatives of crop plants.

# educationAndTraining[].organization.label
University of South Carolina - (Columbia, South Carolina, United States)

# educationAndTraining[].organization.label
University of Florida - (Gainesville, Florida, United States)

# publications[].label
Linkage mapping of starch branching enzyme III in rice (Oryza sativa L) and prediction of location of orthologous genes in other grasses

# publications[].label
Is all red rice found in commercial rice really Oryza sativa?

# publications[].label
The two classes of genes for the major potato tuber protein, patatin, are differentially expressed in tubers and roots.

# publications[].label
Molecular characterization of the patatin multigene family of potato.

# publications[].label
Polymorphism in the GBSS gene affects amylose content in US and European rice germplasm

# publications[].label
High-level tuber expression and sucrose inducibility of a potato Sus4 sucrose synthase gene require 5' and 3' flanking sequences and the leader intron.

# publications[].label
The expression of class I patatin gene fusions in transgenic potato varies with both gene and cultivar.

# publications[].label
Genetics of hybrid sterility and hybrid breakdown in an intersubspecific rice (Oryza sativa L.) population.

# publications[].label
Analysis of a single nucleotide polymorphism that controls the cooking quality of rice using a non-gel based assay

# publications[].label
Association of waxy gene single nucleotide polymorphisms with starch characteristics in rice (Oryza sativa L.)

# publications[].label
Transcript accumulation and utilization of alternate and non-consensus splice sites in rice granule-bound starch synthase are temperature-sensitive and controlled by a single-nucleotide polymorphism.

# publications[].label
Nuclear protein factors binding to a class I patatin promoter region are tuber-specific and sucrose-inducible.

# publications[].label
Tuber proteins of potatoa new and surprising molecular system

# publications[].label
Anchor probes for comparative mapping of grass genera

# publications[].label
Accumulation of lipids, proteins, alkaloids and anthocyanins during embryo development in vivo ofTheobroma cacao L.

# publications[].label
A rapid and efficient transformation method for the production of large numbers of transgenic potato plants

# publications[].label
A potato Sus3 sucrose synthase gene contains a context-dependent 3' element and a leader intron with both positive and negative tissue-specific effects.

# publications[].label
Microsatellites polymorphism on the Waxy gene locus and their relationship to amylose content in indica and japonica rice, Oryza sativa L.

# publications[].label
Characterization of the lipid acyl hydrolase activity of the major potato (Solanum tuberosum) tuber protein, patatin, by cloning and abundant expression in a baculovirus vector.

# publications[].label
Microsatellites and a single-nucleotide polymorphism differentiate apparent amylose classes in an extended pedigree of US rice germ plasm

# publications[].label
Characterization of quantitative trait loci (QTLs) in cultivated rice contributing to field resistance to sheath blight (Rhizoctonia solani).

# publications[].label
Isolation and sequence analysis of cDNAs for the major potato tuber protein, patatin.

# publications[].label
Mapping and genome organization of microsatellite sequences in rice (Oryza sativa L.)

# publications[].label
Potato and tomato Forever Young genes contain class-I patatin promoter-like sequences

# publications[].label
Phosphate Modulates Transcription of Soybean VspB and Other Sugar-Inducible Genes.

# publications[].label
Viscosity of rice flour: a rheological and biological study.

# publications[].label
Epistasis for three grain yield components in rice (Oryza sativa L.).

# publications[].label
Sink- and vascular-associated sucrose synthase functions are encoded by different gene classes in potato.

# publications[].label
Sequence of two apparent pseudogenes of the major potato tuber protein, patatin.

# publications[].label
Mapping of four major rice blast resistance genes from 'Lemont' and 'Teqing' and evaluation of their combinatorial effect for field resistance

# publications[].label
Diversity of microsatellites derived from genomic libraries and GenBank sequences in rice (Oryza sativa L.)

# publications[].label
Use of alternate splice sites in granule-bound starch synthase mRNA from low-amylose rice varieties.

# publications[].label
Analysis of a chimeric class-I patatin-GUS gene in transgenic potato plants: High-level expression in tubers and sucrose-inducible expression in cultured leaf and stem explants.

# publications[].label
Sucrose-regulated expression of a chimeric potato tuber gene in leaves of transgenic tobacco plants.

# publications[].label
Comparison of the protein in axillary bud tubers and underground stolon tubers in potato

# publications[].label
Use of an in vitro tuberization system to study tuber protein gene expression.

# publications[].label
The rhythms of life: circadian output pathways in Neurospora.

# publications[].label
The effect of the Waxy locus (Granule Bound Starch Synthase) on pasting curve characteristics in specialty rices (Oryza sativa L.)

# publications[].label
Identification of quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for heading date and plant height in cultivated rice (Oryza sativa L.).

# publications[].label
Molecular markers linked to the blast resistance gene Pi-z in rice for use in marker-assisted selection.

# publications[].label
Development of DNA markers suitable for marker assisted selection of three Pi genes conferring resistance to multiple Pyricularia grisea pathotypes

# publications[].label
Comparative evaluation of within-cultivar variation of rice (Oryza sativa L.) using microsatellite and RFLP markers.

# publications[].label
Genetic and physical mapping of the patatin genes in potato and tomato.

# streetAddress
Texas A&M University; Biochemistry & Biophysics; 2128 TAMU

# organizations[]
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences

# schools[]
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences