CaltechAUTHORS
Published October 10, 2022 | Version public
Journal Article Metadata-only

The ÓMICAS alliance, an international research program on multi-omics for crop breeding optimization

Creators

  • 1. ROR icon California Institute of Technology
  • 2. ROR icon Pontificia Universidad Javeriana
  • 3. ROR icon Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement
  • 4. ROR icon Genetic Improvement and Adaptation of Mediterranean and Tropical Plants
  • 5. ROR icon Centro Internacional de Agricultura Tropical
  • 6. ROR icon Diversity Adaptation plant Development
  • 7. ROR icon Icesi University
  • 8. ROR icon National Institute of Agricultural Botany
  • 9. ROR icon Ghent University

Abstract

The ÓMICAS alliance is part of the Colombian government's Scientific Ecosystem, established between 2017-2018 to promote world-class research, technological advancement and improved competency of higher education across the nation. Since the program's kick-off, ÓMICAS has focused on consolidating and validating a multi-scale, multi-institutional, multi-disciplinary strategy and infrastructure to advance discoveries in plant science and the development of new technological solutions for improving agricultural productivity and sustainability. The strategy and methods described in this article, involve the characterization of different crop models, using high-throughput, real-time phenotyping technologies as well as experimental tissue characterization at different levels of the omics hierarchy and under contrasting conditions, to elucidate epigenome-, genome-, proteome- and metabolome-phenome relationships. The massive data sets are used to derive in-silico models, methods and tools to discover complex underlying structure-function associations, which are then carried over to the production of new germplasm with improved agricultural traits. Here, we describe ÓMICAS' R&D trans-disciplinary multi-project architecture, explain the overall strategy and methods for crop-breeding, recent progress and results, and the overarching challenges that lay ahead in the field.

Additional Information

This article is part of the Research Topic: High-Throughput Field Phenotyping to Advance Precision Agriculture and Enhance Genetic Gain, Volume II. This work was partially funded by the "OMICAS program: Optimización Multiescala In-silico de Cultivos Agrícolas Sostenibles (Infraestructura y validación en Arroz y Caña de Azúcar)" Scientific Ecosystem belonging to the Scientific Colombia Program, sponsored by The World Bank, The Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MinCiencias), ICETEX, the Colombian Ministry of Education and the Colombian Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Turism, under GRANT ID: FP44842-217-2018, Award ID: 792-61187. The authors would like to recognize all the students and technical staff sponsored by the program, from the different institutions involved, for their dedication and contributions to the work reported here, including: Juan M. Marmolejo, Jhonattan de la Roche, Mauricio Peñuela, Jenny Gallo, Chrystian Sosa, Gustavo Lara, Sammy Perdomo, Pedro M. Hernández, David Jimenez, Miguel A. Romero, Nicolás López, Camila Riccio, Sandra Loaiza, Manuel Valencia, Vanessa Reyes, and Juliana Chaura. The authors would also like to thank Dr. Edison Suarez, Ana Claudia Gordillo, and Sandra Losano from Minciencias, father Luis F. Gomez, S.J., Carlos Monthermoso, Ingrid Schuler, Jaime Aguilar, Leidi Rojas, Yaneth Rodríguez, Alejandra Catano, and Michael Hernández from the PUJC, and the alliance's board members Joe Tohme from CIAT-CGIAR, Rodomiro Ortiz from the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, José H. Bahamón from Universidad Icesi, Jorge H. Victoria, Patricia Guzmán from Fedearroz, Juan Manuel Chaves from REDDI, and Marcela Arrivillaga from PUJC.

Additional details

Identifiers

PMCID
PMC9614048
Eprint ID
117906
Resolver ID
CaltechAUTHORS:20221117-155838300.10

Related works

Describes
10.3389/fpls.2022.1104501 (DOI)

Funding

Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MinCiencias)
FP44842-217-201
Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Turism (Colombia)
792-61187

Dates

Created
2022-12-08
Created from EPrint's datestamp field
Updated
2023-03-03
Created from EPrint's last_modified field

Caltech Custom Metadata

Other Numbering System Name
WAG
Other Numbering System Identifier
1544