Coral genome project begins

UPDATED: Australian researchers are set to begin sequencing the genome of an antipodean coral, marking the first time an aquatic animal will be fully sequenced in this country.

The coral under the microarray is the colourful Acropora millepora, found throughout the Great Barrier Reef off Queensland. It has around 20,000 genes - a similar number to humans.

The project is a joint undertaking beween the Australian Genome Research Facility (AGRF) and researchers in the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies (CoECRS) based at James Cook University and the Australian National University. Additional help will be provided by researchers from The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute and The University of Queensland.

The Australian research will be carried out using the latest technology developed by the biotech company Illumina which is both faster and more cost effective than the technology used to first sequence the human genome.

“This gene mapping project has both practical and scientific significance," said professor David Miller of CoECRS and JCU, who with Dr Eldon Ball at the ANU is co-leader of the project. "It will help us to understand how corals build reefs – and why they fail to do so when they are under stress.

“It will enable us to predict with much greater confidence how corals are likely to respond to changes in the oceans such as global warming, acidification, the spread of coral diseases and various forms of pollution.”

The researchers also plan to sequence the symbiotic partner of Acropora millepora, the dinoflagellate Symbiodinium as well as other microbes associated with coral.

“It’s a genuine first for Australian science. For years we have been looking on while overseas countries explored the genetic potential of our iconic native species. Now at last we have a genome project that is 100 per cent Australian," said Miller.

A project with similar ambitions has been running in Western Australia by the Australian Amphibian Genome Project to sequence the genome of the cane toad and other native frogs.