plant tissue culture & genetics

Plant Epigenetics

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A number of epigenetic phenomena were discovered in plants, but are not limited to plants. For instance, paramutation describes the heritable change in expression status of an allele upon its exposure to an allele that has the same sequence but displays a different expression status.  plant biology has made to the discovery and study of epigenetic phenomena, plants provide ideal systems for epigenomics research. Epigenomic modifications alter gene expression without changing the letters of the DNA alphabet (A-T-C-G), providing cells with an additional tool to fine-tune how genes control the cellular machinery. By understanding epigenomic alterations in plants, scientists may be able to manipulate them for various purposes, including biofuels and creating crops that can withstand stressful events such as drought. That knowledge of epigenomic changes in crop plants could tell producers what to breed for and could have a huge impact on identifying plants that can survive certain conditions and adapt to environmental stressor. Many fundamental discoveries concerning epigenetics and the elucidation of mechanisms of epigenetic regulation have developed from studies performed in plants. In Plant Epigenetics and Epigenomics: Methods and Protocols, leading scientists in the epigenetics field describe comprehensive techniques that have been developed to understand the plant epigenetic landscape.

The global epigenetics market is projected to reach the value of $18.2 billion by the year 2015 driven by investigation of factors influencing cellular malfunction and disease development. Also, developments in epigenetic studies like biomarker discovery and scientifically useful biomarker tests are expected to support the market growth.