Sunflower genome reveals symphony of genes involved in oil production and flowering

Less than one year after the decoding of the sunflower genome, in-depth analyses of said genome have revealed the hundreds of genes that work together to regulate flowering, and those that are involved in the production of oil. Carried out by INRA scientists¹ within the framework of the SUNRISE project in the French Investments for the Future Programme and in collaboration with the International sunflower genome consortium², the studies were published online in the May 22, 2017 issue of Nature . These initial findings will help in designing the enhanced sunflower varieties of tomorrow, which will be better adapted to the inevitable changes in agriculture as it faces new environmental challenges, and in particular climate change. In June 2016³, INRA scientists - within the framework of the SUNRISE Investments for the Future Programme (see insert below) and in collaboration with the International sunflower genome consortium² - decoded sunflower genes in their entirety, thereby providing science with a wealth of data. New and improved sunflower oil. Over the course of history, the genes of cultivated sunflowers have been selected in two ways: through the domestication of wild species by North American indigenous peoples, and through the varietal selection that results from crossing the most productive varieties. The goal was to improve traits of agronomic interest, such as resistance to disease and oil yields.