PAG satellite event: Closing the gaps in plant and animal genomes

Event overview

Nanopore sequencing provides unprecedented access to even the most complex plant and animal genomes. Catch up on our online event to learn how it is being used to resolve highly repetitive arrays, characterise large SVs & SNPs, & shed light on the epigenome.

Catch up on our online event, where scientists shared their latest research using nanopore technology across the field of animal and plant genomics. Topics include plant epigenetic and genetic landscapes, viral transmission in leukemia, SNPs in the cattle genome, and resolving highly repetitive regions.

Unfinished business: solving highly repetitive plant telomere, centromere, and ribosomal arrays with long reads​

Todd Michael, Salk Institute for Biological Studies, discussed how he used nanopore sequencing to resolve highly repetitive regions in plants. He also demonstrated how he was able to estimate telomere length directly, and how the length of telomeres varies significantly between different plant species.

The genetic and epigenetic landscapes of the Arabidopsis centromeres​

Ian Henderson, University of Cambridge, discussed how nanopore sequencing enabled him and his team to resolve megabase-scale centromeric tandem repeats, profile centromere DNA methylation, and observe their epigenetic organisation.

Tracing viral transmission and evolution of bovine leukemia virus (BLV) through long-read Oxford Nanopore sequencing of the proviral genome​

Bovine leukaemia virus (BLV) causes enzootic bovine leukosis (EBL), which results in immune dysfunction in infected cattle. Laura Pavliscak, CentralStar Cooperative, discussed how nanopore technology is being used for effective retrospective genetic contact tracing of BLV transmission.

Full cattle sperm characterisation: SNPs, SVs, and methylome from a single straw​

Marta Gòdia​, Wageningen University & Research, discussed using nanopore technology to improve genome annotation as well as SNPs & SV calling. In addition, she also shared how methylation can be linked to reproduction outcomes, spermatogenesis, and early fertilisation in cattle.

Authors: Laura Pavliscak, Todd Michael, Ian Henderson and Marta Gòdia​