Paul H. Moore & Ray Ming 
Genomics of Tropical Crop Plants 

Having spent most of my life in Academia teaching and carrying out fundam- tal research on plant form and function, I found this collection of essays to be of considerable interest as they expanded my knowledge of genomics to plants – yond the well-studied model systems of Arabidopsis, rice, and temperate maize. It was even more valuable to me in terms of my more recent interest in international agriculture—in particular, my personal interest in promotingthe integration of – ings from the advanced plant sciences into current approaches to crop impro- ment for the bene t of poor, small-scale farmers in the developing world. In my experience, one of the greatest challenges to such integration is the relatively weak interactionamongscientists workingat the forefrontofgenomicsresearchandthose involved in the improvement of crops important to such farmers. Since most of the crops important to the poor are of tropical origin, one hopes that this very readable collection of essays will help bridge that gap as they should be of interest to both types of scientists. My own experience is interesting in this regard—I had thought that it might be useful to read just a few of these essays and ended up wanting to read them all! Reading this collection forced me to consider several important issues.

Table of Content

Tropical Environments, Biodiversity, and the Origin of Crops.- International Programs and the Use of Modern Biotechnologies for Crop Improvement.- Transgenics for New Plant Products, Applications to Tropical Crops.- Genomics of Banana and Plantain (Musa spp.), Major Staple Crops in the Tropics.- Genomics of Phaseolus Beans, a Major Source of Dietary Protein and Micronutrients in the Tropics.- Genomics of Theobroma cacao, “the Food of the Gods”.- Chickpea, a Common Source of Protein and Starch in the Semi-Arid ropics.- Genomics of Citrus, a Major Fruit Crop of Tropical and Subtropical Regions.- Genomics of Coffee One of the World’s Largest Traded Commodities.- Cowpea, a Multifunctional Legume.- Genomics of Eucalyptus, a Global Tree for Energy, Paper, and Wood.- Ginger and Turmeric Ancient Spices and Modern Medicines.- Genomics of Macadamia, a Recently Domesticated Tree Nut Crop.- Genomics of Tropical Maize, a Staple Food and Feed across the World.- Molecular Research in Oil Palm, the Key Oil Crop for the Future.- Genomics of Papaya a Common Source of Vitamins in the Tropics.- Genomics of Peanut, a Major Source of Oil and Protein.- Genomics of Pineapple, Crowning The King of Tropical Fruits.- Genomics of Tropical Solanaceous Species: Established and Emerging Crops.- Genomics of Sorghum, a Semi-Arid Cereal and Emerging Model for Tropical Grass Genomics.- Sugarcane: A Major Source of Sweetness, Alcohol, and Bio-energy.- Genomics of Wheat, the Basis of Our Daily Bread.- Genomics of Yams, a Common Source of Food and Medicine in the Tropics.

About the author

Paul H. Moore is the Research Leader of the USDA’s  Tropical Plant Physiology, Disease and Production Unit at the Hawaiian Agricultural Research Center located in AIEA, Hawaii.

Ray Ming is an Associate Professor of the Department of Plant Biology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.