Construction and characterization of a BAC library from the Coffea arabica genotype Timor Hybrid CIFC 832/2.

Most of the world's coffee production originates from Coffea arabica, an allotetraploid species with low genetic diversity and for which few genomic resources are available. Genomic libraries with large DNA fragment inserts are useful tools for the study of plant genomes, including the production of physical maps, integration studies of physical and genetic maps, genome structure analysis and gene isolation by positional cloning. Here, we report the construction and characterization of a Bacterial Artificial Chromosome (BAC) library from C. arabica Timor Hybrid CIFC 832/2, a parental genotype for several modern coffee cultivars. The BAC library consists of 56,832 clones with an average insert size of 118 kb, which represents a dihaploid genome coverage of five to sixfold. The content of organellar DNA was estimated at 1.04 and 0.5 % for chloroplast and mitochondrial DNA, respectively. The BAC library was screened for the NADPH-dependent mannose-6-phosphate reductase gene (CaM6PR) with markers positioned on four linkage groups of a partial C. arabica genetic map. A mixed approach using PCR and membrane hybridization of BAC pools allowed for the discovery of nine BAC clones with the CaM6PR gene and 53 BAC clones that were anchored to the genetic map with simple sequence repeat markers. This library will be a useful tool for future studies on comparative genomics and the identification of genes and regulatory elements controlling major traits in this economically important crop species.

Spidroins from the Brazilian spider Nephilengys cruentata (Araneae: Nephilidae).

Spiders produce up to six different kinds of silk, each one for a specific biological function. Spider silks are also known for their unique mechanical properties. The possibility of producing new materials with similar properties motivated research on these silk proteins (spidroins). Using expression sequence tags, we identified four spidroins produced by major ampullate, minor ampullate, flagelliform and tubuliform silk glands from the Brazilian spider Nephilengys cruentata (Araneae: Nephilidae). The new protein sequences showed substantial similarity to other spidroins previously described, with high content of alanine and glycine due to the presence of the highly repetitive motifs (polyAla, (GA)n, (GGX)n, (GPGGX)n). Similarities among sequences were also observed between the different spidroins with the exception of tubuliform spidroin, which presents a unique complex amino acid sequence with high amounts of serine and low amounts of glycine.