The first meeting of the international Wheat Genome Sequencing Consortium (WGSC) will take place May 31 in Bozeman, Mont. The group's kickoff meeting coincides with the International Triticeae Mapping Initiative (ITMI) Conference in Bozeman May 29-31.

The international WGSC is a collaboration of scientists and of industry and government representatives who are dedicated to sequencing the wheat genome (wheat's entire collection of genes) for global benefits. Membership in the WSGC is open to any individual or organization that supports the organization's goals and objectives.

Conceived in 1989, the ITMI originally was a five-year effort to develop "restriction fragment length polymorphism" (RLFP) maps for crops of the Triticeae tribe, mainly wheat and barley. RFLPs -- a key tool in DNA fingerprinting -- are variations in DNA fragment banding patterns between different individuals of a species.

Wheat is the staple food for 40 percent of the world's population, providing 20 percent of the calories and 55 percent of the carbohydrates consumed. Sequencing of the wheat genome will result ultimately in more healthful and nutritious food that could lead to significant improvements in human and animal health.

The rice genome has been sequenced, and the maize genome sequencing project will begin later this year. Wheat, rice, and maize together provide about three-quarters of the calories and half of the protein required by the world's population.

"Now is the time to begin a concerted effort to sequence the genome of wheat, the last major world crop, which is grown on 17 percent of the world's cultivated land," said Bikram Gill, the U.S. co-chair of the WGSC. Gill is a University Distinguished Professor in the Department of Plant Pathology at Kansas State University.

"Over the last decade, the wheat community has proven that the wheat genome is exploitable for marker development and map-based cloning. We now face the challenge of sequencing this complex genome to accelerate gene discovery and improve this major crop. As we have done in the past, we will rise to this challenge," said Catherine Feuillet, the European co-chair of the WGSC.

According to Dusti Fritz of the Kansas Wheat Commission, a sequenced wheat genome will provide the scientific foundation that is necessary for wheat producer profitability.

The Kansas Wheat Commission and Kansas State University have spearheaded the effort to create an international consortium and will cover the start-up costs of the WGSC's Web services and executive director, Kellye Eversole.

A draft mission statement, white paper, and other materials are available on the international WGSC Web site at www.wheatgenome.org.

K State Research and Extension is a short name for the Kansas State University Agricultural Experiment Station and Cooperative Extension Service, a program designed to generate and distribute useful knowledge for the well being of Kansans. Supported by county, state, federal and private funds, the program has county Extension offices, experiment fields, area Extension offices and regional research centers statewide. Its headquarters is on the K State campus in Manhattan.