Oil palm genome sequence reveals divergence of interfertile species in Old and New worlds

The genome sequence of the African oil palm, the main source of oil production, is used to predict at least 34,802 genes, including oil biosynthesis genes; comparison with the draft sequence of the South American oil palm reveals that the two species may have diverged in the New World and that segmental duplications of chromosome arms define the palaeotetraploid origin of palm trees. Two papers published in this issue of Nature deal with the genetics of two variants of one of the most important crops in use today — the African oil palm Elaeis guineensis and its South American cousin Elaeis oleifera. Palm oil accounts for almost half the edible oil consumed worldwide and is also a biofuel, although not without…

• NS
  National Science Foundation

  Award: 0421604
• MP
  Malaysian Palm Oil Board