Sequence data characterization and development of DNA markers for sesame (Sesamum indicum L.)

Abstract

New DNA sequencing techniques enable researchers obtain large quantity of sequence information, which are deposited in digital storage or could be further mined for other purposes. Sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) is one of veryimportant oilseed crops, its seed oil contains many antioxidant properties making sesame the queen of oil crops.Today, molecular plant breeding technology is indispensable for plant breeders and seed producers. Compared toother seed oil crops the available number of microsatellite markers in sesame is still not sufficient enough for thedevelopment of polymorphic markers for breeding and genetic studies. Thus, new approaches or resources are neededfor development of microsatellite markers for sesame. In the present study, we utilized a total of 45099 transcribedgenomic DNA sequences/expressed sequence tags and mined these sequences for studying frequency of microsatellite motifs, ranging from di- to hexa-nucleotides with four to ten tandem repeats, and repeat numbers greater than 10.Using mined transcribed data, 42 putative microsatellite markers were developed and characterized at the sequencelevel. However, we did not confirm these markers and have no information about the level of their polymorphisms insesame in vitro. We discussed the biological meaning of the motif lengths and repeat numbers in the sesame genome.