ABSTRACT
Functional genomics is a field of molecular biology that utilizes the vast wealth of genomics data to elucidate gene function and genetic interactions. It concentrates on the dynamic features of “omics” related research such as transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics and protein-protein interactions. The transcriptome is the total set of transcript (messenger RNA) in a given
Southern Crop Protection and Food Research Center, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, London, Ontario, Canada N5V 4T3. *Corresponding author: sangeeta.dhaubhadel@agr.gc.ca
species, or the specific subset of transcripts present in a particular cell type at a given condition. The transcriptome can vary with the developmental stages, tissue types or external environmental conditions. Even though the absolute activity of a gene is determined by the protein it encodes, measurement of mRNA levels has proven to be an important tool for investigating gene function. The availability of complete genome sequence information of several plant species and large sets of expressed sequence tags (ESTs) from many organisms have prompted the development of efficient methods to access the global gene expression patterns and genome-wide analysis of genetic variation. A wide variety of technologies such as cDNA and oligonucleotide microarrays, serial analysis of gene expression (SAGE), massively parallel signature sequencing (MPSS), and robust analysis of 5’- transcript ends (5’ RATE) have been used in many organisms to study gene expression profiles and to elucidate the functional roles of several genes at once.
