Comparison of transposable elements across the various genome types of the Oryza genus. Oryza

The C-value paradox is the observation that the size of the genome shows no correlation with the biological complexity of the organism. Explanations include polyploidization, transposable element proliferation and transposable element elimination. The Oryza genus is the ideal model system for studying this phenomenon because i)there is observed a 3.6 fold genome size variation across the genus and ii)there 23 species with 10 genome types; 6 diploid and 4 tetraploid. Libraries of randomly sheared DNA were prepared from 12 representatives of the ten genome types. The inserts ranged in size from 2.5 kbp to 3.9 kbp. The inserts were bidirectionally sequenced and the sequence analyzed for transposable element composition.