Proceedings of the sessions are published. ITMI participants held their first workshop in 1990 in Sacramento, California. A second workshop followed in Manhattan, Kansas, in 1991. A special feature of ITMI is the wide international participation in this field of research and at the meetings. Genome mapping is an exciting area of modern plant genetics with many potential applications in crop improvement.
Rapid progress is evident.
As an example, some maps presented at the meetings doubled in the number of mapped probes between 1990 and 1991. Facilitating Information Exchange ITMI emphasizes the free exchange of information, materials, probes, and genetic stocks. As mapping progress advances, masses of data accumulate. Thus, the communication role of ITMI has become increasingly important in facilitating information flow. The USDA Plant Genome Research Program recognizes the importance of computer database development in making genome mapping results available to researchers.