**POULTRY GENOME NEWSLETTER** Issue No. 2, April, 1998
CRITTENDEN ENTERS POULTRY HALL OF FAME!
In January, we received notice from John Fuller, Jr., President of the American Poultry Historical Society, that Lyman Crittenden had been selected for induction into the Poultry Hall of Fame. A plaque with Critt's likeness is being prepared to hang in the Hall which is housed in the National Ag Library in Beltsville with an inscription as follows: "Dr. Lyman B. Crittenden was a research geneticist with the Agricultural Research Service for 33 years. His early seminal research identified dominant virus receptor genes associated with the inheritance of susceptibility to avian leukosis viruses. He developed the first experimental line of chickens lacking endogenous retroviruses that is widely used in commercial and academic research laboratories worldwide. Dr. Crittenden subsequently led in the development of the first trangenic chicken that was resistant to infection by an exogenous strain of leukosis virus. He also led in the implementation of the chicken genome mapping project. His creative research encompassed avian: genetics, retroviral oncology, immunology and molecular biology." Thanks go to Gene Smith, who wrote the inscription above, and who spearheaded Critt's nomination. I'm sure that all who know him, join me in congratulating Critt on this well-deserved honor.
PAG-VI and NAGRP/NC-168 REPORT
PAG-VI and the companion NAGRP and NC-168 meetings were another great success this past January. NC-168 had one of its best turnouts of Stations in recent memory including reports from Wisconsin, Virginia, Tuskegee, Massachusetts (unfortunately, this may be the last one from MA for a while), Maryland, California, Delaware, Iowa, Minnesota, Michigan, ADOL, Arkansas, Indiana, Illinois, and Ohio, along with several guest reports, and an excellent invited talk by Nat Bumstead. (Apologies to any Stations I may have missed.) Thanks to Mike Grossman for chairing the session. Incoming officers for this year are Ron Okimoto as chair and Eric Wong as secretary of NC-168 and Hans Cheng as chair and Mary Delaney as secretary of NAGRP-Poultry. There were also presentations from our new Administrative Adviser, Margaret Dentine, Dick Frahm, and an update on germplasm preservation efforts (see item later in this issue). Next year's meeting will be joint with PAG-VII on January 16-17 in San Diego. Most participants were able to stay around for PAG-VI and were treated to many outstanding talks and posters. Among the highlights were presentations by Lee Hood, Steve Kay, Grahame Bulfield, Nat Bumstead, Morris Soller, Ron Davis, and David Botstein. A recurring theme was that of functional and comparative genomics, especially the use of microarrays and chips. Abstracts from PAG-VI can be seen at http://probe.nalusda.gov:8300/pag/6/review/.
The program is already being set for PAG-VII. Don't miss it.
MORE MEETING NEWS: ISAG & POULTRY GENOME MAPPING WORKSHOP
The next meeting of the International Society for Animal Genetics will be held in Auckland, New Zealand on August 9-14, 1998 (see meetings list, below). ISAG will include the Poultry Genome Mapping Workshop, being coordinated by Martien Groenen and Hans Cheng. The tentative workshop program with topic sub-coordinators is given below:
1. Integration of linkage maps and overview of all linkage data
(Martien Groenen / Hans Cheng))
2. Physical mapping data (Abel Ponce de Leon / Alan Vignal)
-Standard Karyotype
-alignment with linkage maps
-set of probes for the identification of micro chromosomes
-nomenclature for micro chromosomes
3. Comparative map (Dave Burt)
4. Resources in genome mapping (Nat Bumstead)
-available genomic libraries (which, where, how etc)
-cDNA libraries
-databases
5. QTL data and mapping of genes for monogenic traits
For this session a selection will be made of presentations based on the abstracts for the meeting. Therefore, this will be the only theme with several presentations.
Those who will be attending and participating in the Workshop should contact the respective subcoordinator or the overall coordinators (Groenen: Martien.Groenen@ALG.VF.WAU.NL; Cheng: hcheng@msu.edu) as soon as possible.
NATIONAL ANIMAL GENOME RESEARCH PROGRAM UPDATE
The Renewal Proposal for the NAGRP support program (NRSP-8) has been approved by Station Directors in the North Central and Northeast Regions. Minor modifications were requested by Directors in the Southern and Western Regions, but it is highly likely that the proposal will be approved. An early notice of the RFP for proposals from those who wish to be Species Coordinators was circulated to NRSP-8 members recently. The actual RFP is expected around April 23 and the proposals will be due on May 22. All interested members are encouraged to apply (the PI must be from a participating Station). Information can be obtained from Shirley Riney (sriney@iastate.edu). The NRSP-8 Renewal Proposal (prior to recent modifications), Critical Review, and Publications List are available, as is the 1997 Poultry Coordinator's Report, on the Poultry Genome Homepage (http://poultry.mph.msu.edu, under the "About" button).
USDA FOOD GENOME INITIATIVE
A meeting will be held to discuss the USDA's Food Genome Initiative on April 15 in Washington. A draft copy of this initiative has been circulated for comment. If you would like a copy of the Initiative document or wish to send comments, email Dr. Sally Rockey of CSREES at srockey@reeusda.gov. The draft document proposes a multi-faceted program targeting food-related plant, animal and microbial genome research and applications that would ramp up to a total of $100 million per year in spending by USDA. Areas of emphasis include bioinformatics, functional genomics, physical maps, QTLs and EST generation.
DUTCH TREAT!!
The message below was recently circulated on angenmap by Martien Groenen, but it bears repeating to everyone interested in poultry genetics. "Chicken Genome Mappers should bookmark the following new web site: http://www.zod.wau.nl/vf/chickensite/chicken.html. Information is provided on: -The latest version of the Wageningen Chicken Linkage Map containing 480 microsatellites. Tables with information about the microsatellites used, all two-point lod scores etc.; Results of some of our QTL analysis in our broiler x broiler cross; Information about our chicken BAC library; And more.
As readers of this newsletter know, Martien's lab at Wageningen is one of the international leaders in chicken genome mapping, and he is to be congratulated for making so much useful information and resources widely available in this manner.
MICROSATELLITE PRIMER KITS AND OTHER RESOURCES
As reported last time, we recently restocked our supply of microsatellite kits #1 to #3, due to the unprecedented demand. In addition, we've generated Kit #4, which contains an additional 56 microsatellite primer pairs, bringing our total collection to 575 pairs. All are fluorescently labeled for potential use on automated sequencers. Information on all Kits is posted under "Microsatellite Marker Information and Available Primer Kits" in the "Maps and Tables" section of our Homepage (http://poultry.mph.msu.edu). Email me (22314jbd@msu.edu) or Hans Cheng (hcheng@msu.edu) if you are interested. By the way, my brief survey at PAG-VI indicated support for a variety of common resources including more microsatellite primers, AFLP primers, EST primers, BAC and YAC libraries, RH panels and DNA arrays. We are investigating most of these possibilities, but are limited to those that can be delivered by Sept. 30 when our budget runs out. (For BAC library access see the Groenen page described above.)
TAKE ME TO YOUR LEADER
As reported previously on angenmap, the USDA-ARS Avian Disease and Oncology Laboratory is seeking to fill the position of Research Leader and Location Coordinator. The position description seeks a Veterinary Medical Officer, Microbiologist, or Molecular Geneticist. For more information on the position, contact Murray Bakst at mbakst@pilot.msu.edu.
GERMPLASM UPDATE
The final version of the report, Avian Genetic Resources at Risk: An Assessment and Proposal for Conservation of Genetic Stocks in the USA and Canada, has recently been completed under the sponsorship of the University of California Genetic Resources Conservation Program at UC-Davis. This report, prepared by a large group led by Jaqueline Pisenti outlines the current state of poultry germplasm resources, identifies critical problems in retaining access to these resources and make recommendations for USDA and other support for germplasm conservation. Contact Dr. Pisenti at jmpisenti@ucdavis.edu, for further information.
ROSLIN RELEASES REPORT TO RAVE REVIEWS
I recently received my copy of the 96-97 Annual Report of the Roslin Institute. As usual, this was beautifully prepared, and this year it included several interesting reports on Dolly, the cloned sheep, along with other descriptions of selected research programs at the Roslin. If you would like to get on their mailing list, please email Ms. Frances Frame at Frances.Frame@bbsrc.ac.uk
UPCOMING MEETINGS OF INTEREST:
Genetically Engineering and Cloning Animals, Park City/Deer Valley, Utah, June 21-23, 1998, sponsored by the Utah State University Biotechnology Center. Info: Nancy Ashcroft, USU Biotechnology Center, Logan, Utah 84322-4700, phone: 435-797-2753, Fax: 435-797-2766, email: nancya@cscrs1.usu.edu.
International Symposium on Food-Bourne Salmonella in Poultry, Baltimore, MD, July 25-26, 1998. Info: American Association of Avian Pathologists, 382 West Street Road, KennettSquare, PA 19348-1692, Fax: 610-444-5387, email: aaap@vet.upenn.edu.
Poultry Science Association, Penn State University, August 3-7, 1998; contact: Poultry Science Association, 1111 North Dunlap Avenue, Savoy, IL 61874 or http://gallus.tamu.edu/psa/psa.html/
International Society for Animal Genetics, Auckland, New Zealand, August 9-14, 1998. Conference info: Ian Anderson, 64-6-356-9099 x7261, Fax: 64-6-350-5621, ebtu@manawatu.gen.nz; Program inquiries: Tom Broad, 64-3-489-3809, Fax: 64-3-489-9308, broad@agresearch.cri.nz; or http://biochem.otago.ac.nz:800/panzora/isag/isag3.html
(See also information on Poultry Genome Mapping Workshop above.)
Fourth Global Conference on Conservation of Domestic Animal Genetic Resources, Birendra International Convention Centre, Baneswar, Kathmandu, Nepal, August 17-21, 1998. Info: RBI NEPAL '98 Kathmandu Conference Secretariat, c/o Dr. Nanda Prasad Shrestha, Nepal Agricultural Research Council, P.O. Box 1950, Kathmandu, Nepal, phone: 977-1-523160, Fax: 977-1-521197, email: biodiversity@narcanbd.wlink.comp.np.
Plant and Animal Genome VII; San Diego, CA, January 17-21, 1999; associated with National Animal Genome Research Program meeting and NC-168 Regional Research meeting. Information will eventually be available at http://www.scherago.com.
ISAG 2000, Hyatt Regency Hotel, Minneapolis, MN, July 23-26, 2000. More info to come.
PUT YOUR ITEM OF INTEREST HERE
We are always happy to include items of general interest to the poultry genetics community in the Poultry Genome Newsletter. Please email your contributions to us at the addresses below. Please send any items by June 15, 1998 to be sure it gets into the next issue.
Addresses:
Jerry Dodgson, Poultry Coordinator; email: 22314jbd@msu.edu
Dept. of Microbiology, Giltner Hall
Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI 48824
Lyman Crittenden, Coordinator Emeritus.; email: crittend@itis.com
8550 Highway 19
Cross Plains, WI 53528-9300
Hans Cheng, Co-Coord.
ADOL
USDA-ARS
3606 E. Mt. Hope Ave.
East Lansing, MI 48823
email: hcheng@pilot.msu.edu
Supported by Regional Research Funds, Hatch Act, to the
National Research Service Program: NRSP-8.
National Animal Genome Research Program, Richard Frahm, Director, CSREES