Scientific Content
To 
explore the links between genotype and phenotype, Rice Diversity Project researchers began by selecting a diverse panel of wild and cultivated rice germplasm from around the world. 400 O. sativa accessions were selected to encompass a large proportion of the geographic, sub-population and phenotypic diversity that is available among Asian rice varieties. The panel also includes a broad array of ancestral O. rufipogon rice accessions. All of this germplasm will be available as purified lines.
We next evaluated the O. sativa accessions in replicated field trials over two years to characterize their developmental, biochemical and morphological characteristics.
At the same time, we generated molecular fingerprints for all the material in our panel using SSRs to facilitate identification and management of the seed stocks. We are also developing high-resolution SNP-based genotyping assaysthat will allow us to gather more detailed genomic information on these materials.
The genotypic and phenotypic information generated on this project is being deposited in a project database where—with the help of sophisticated bioinformatics and analysis tools —we will explore the relationships between genotype and phenotype. More information, publications and reports documenting our project findings to date can be found here.