Considerable work has already been done in understanding the rice genome. The Genomics Institute at Clemson University is, in fact, one of the world centers for sequencing and studying the rice genome. Transposable elements make up an estimated 30 percent of the plant's genome. Geneticists have been making progress understanding transposable elements for some years, but most of the work has been done in plants like maize, where transposable elements were originally discovered. They shake up an otherwise conservative genome and, in this way, both threaten and enhance genomic potential.
Rice is a logical next step for scientists studying transposable elements.
Although wheat is a more important crop in the United States, the genome of rice is only a fraction the size of wheat's, making it much easier to study. The team's first step will be to identify all the transposable elements in the rice genome. They will then develop them as molecular markers to see if any of them are biologically active and contribute to genome diversity. Transposable elements may provide a way to diversify the genome in response to environmental changes. Rice, corn, barley, wheat and sorghum are all grasses, and each species exists in numerous varieties bred over the centuries by farmers and scientists.