ABSTRACT
The genome sequence of Populus trichocarpa was a major breakthrough in plant biology and, in particular, in forest genetics. This resource has propelled Populus to the forefront of model organisms for forestry, and has generated substantial interest and attention in the genomics community as a whole. At the time of its selection in 2003, Populus was already wellestablished as a model organism because of its experimental tractability, potential economic importance, and its central role in many ecosystems (Taylor 2002; Jansson and Douglas 2007). The rationale for selecting Populus was based in part on its importance, and in part on its tractability as a model organism for genomics research. The Populus whole genome sequencing project was initially proposed by Roger Dahlman, program manager of the US Department of Energy’s (DOE) Terrestrial Carbon program, in January 2001. The DOE had made major infrastructure and personnel investments for the human genome project, which was nearing completion in 2000. The available sequencing capacity was therefore available for organisms with special relevance to the DOE research missions related to energy production and its consequences. Populus was well-positioned in this regard because there was a long history of DOE-funded research on Populus as a potential bioenergy crop (Dinus et al. 2001), and a surge of interest in Populus as a possible solution for carbon sequestration to counter anthropogenic climate change (Tuskan and Walsh 2001). Following substantial grass-roots lobbying and the production of a series of white papers, the sequencing project was approved by DOE’s Offi ce of Science in October 2001. The Populus genomics community quickly organized around this project, and the International Populus Genome Consortium (https://www.ornl.gov/sci/ipgc/) was formed in 2002 to spearhead the project.
