A PCR Assay for the Anthocyaninless Mutation in Fast Plants and a Bridge between Classical Genetics and Genomics

 

Tested Studies in Laboratory Teaching, 2018, Volume 39

Doug Wendell

Abstract

A PCR assay to detect the mutation responsible for the non-purple trait in Rapid Cycling Brassica rapa (RCBr), a.k.a. Wisconsin Fast Plants and ways to incorporate it in the biology lab was developed. Purple vs. non-purple variation in RCBr is an easy-to-score Mendelian trait with non-purple being recessive to purple. My group has recently identified an insertion mutation in the gene for dihydroflavonol 4-reductase (DFR) as being responsible for the non-purple trait. A robust PCR assay detects the mutant and wild type alleles of this gene in any Fast Plant strain. In this mini workshop you will see the PCR assay and use the nucleotide sequence of the mutant and wild type alleles as a bridge between classical genetics, molecular genetics, and bioinformatics.

Keywords:  PCR, mutation, Fast Plants, Mendelian genetics, molecular genetics

University of Wisconsin, Madison (2017)