Here we analyse genetic variation, population structure and diversity among 3,010 diverse Asian cultivated rice (Oryza sativa L.) genomes from the 3,000 Rice Genomes Project. Our results are consistent with the five major groups previously recognized, but also suggest several unreported subpopulations that correlate with geographic location. We identified 29 million single nucleotide polymorphisms, 2.4 million small indels and over 90,000 structural variations that contribute to within-and between-population variation. Using pan-genome analyses, we identified more than 10,000 novel full-length protein-coding genes and a high number of presence-absence variations. The complex patterns of introgression observed in domestication genes are consistent with multiple independent rice domestication events. The public availability of data from the 3,000 Rice Genomes Project provides a resource for rice genomics research and breeding.Asian cultivated rice is grown worldwide and comprises the staple food for half of the global population. It is envisaged that by the year 2035 1 feeding this growing population will necessitate that an additional 112 million metric tons of rice be produced on a smaller area of land, using less water and under more fluctuating climatic conditions, which will require that future rice cultivars be higher yielding and resilient to multiple abiotic and biotic stresses. The foundation of the continued improvement of rice cultivars is the rich genetic diversity within domesticated populations and wild relatives [2][3][4] . For over 2,000 years, two major types of O. sativa-O. sativa Xian group (here referred to as Xian/Indica (XI) and also known as , Hsien or Indica) and O. sativa Geng Group (here referred to as Geng/Japonica (GJ) and also known as , Keng or Japonica)-have historically been recognized [5][6][7] . Varied degrees of post-reproductive barriers exist between XI and GJ rice accessions 8 ; this differentiation between XI and GJ rice types and the presence of different varietal groups are well-documented at isozyme and DNA levels 6,9 . Two other distinct groups have also been recognized using molecular markers 10 ; one of these encompasses the Aus, Boro and Rayada ecotypes from Bangladesh and India (which we term the circum-Aus group (cA)) and the other comprises the famous Basmati and Sadri aromatic varieties (which we term the circum-Basmati group (cB)).Approximately 780,000 rice accessions are available in gene banks worldwide 11 . To enable the more efficient use of these accessions in future rice improvement, the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, BGI-Shenzhen and International Rice Research Institute sequenced over 3,000 rice genomes (3K-RG) as part of the 3,000 Rice Genomes Project 12. Here we present analyses of genetic variation in the 3K-RG that focus on important aspects of O. sativa diversity, single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and structural variation (deletions, duplications, inversions and translocations). We also construct a species pangenome consisting of 'core...

Sorghum is a food and feed cereal crop adapted to heat and drought and a staple for 500 million of the world’s poorest people. Its small diploid genome and phenotypic diversity make it an ideal C4 grass model as a complement to C3 rice. Here we present high coverage (16–45 × ) resequenced genomes of 44 sorghum lines representing the primary gene pool and spanning dimensions of geographic origin, end-use and taxonomic group. We also report the first resequenced genome of S. propinquum, identifying 8 M high-quality SNPs, 1.9 M indels and specific gene loss and gain events in S. bicolor. We observe strong racial structure and a complex domestication history involving at least two distinct domestication events. These assembled genomes enable the leveraging of existing cereal functional genomics data against the novel diversity available in sorghum, providing an unmatched resource for the genetic improvement of sorghum and other grass species.

We present an Aboriginal Australian genomic sequence obtained from a 100-year-old lock of hair donated by an Aboriginal man from southern Western Australia in the early 20th century. We detect no evidence of European admixture and estimate contamination levels to be below 0.5%. We show that Aboriginal Australians are descendants of an early human dispersal into eastern Asia, possibly 62,000 to 75,000 years ago. This dispersal is separate from the one that gave rise to modern Asians 25,000 to 38,000 years ago. We also find evidence of gene flow between populations of the two dispersal waves prior to the divergence of Native Americans from modern Asian ancestors. Our findings support the hypothesis that present-day Aboriginal Australians descend from the earliest humans to occupy Australia, likely representing one of the oldest continuous populations outside Africa.

We have identified about 20 million rice SNPs by aligning reads from the 3000 rice genomes project with the Nipponbare genome. The SNPs and allele information are organized into a SNP-Seek system (http://www.oryzasnp.org/iric-portal/), which consists of Oracle database having a total number of rows with SNP genotypes close to 60 billion (20 M SNPs × 3 K rice lines) and web interface for convenient querying. The database allows quick retrieving of SNP alleles for all varieties in a given genome region, finding different alleles from predefined varieties and querying basic passport and morphological phenotypic information about sequenced rice lines. SNPs can be visualized together with the gene structures in JBrowse genome browser. Evolutionary relationships between rice varieties can be explored using phylogenetic trees or multidimensional scaling plots.

BackgroundSesame, Sesamum indicum L., is considered the queen of oilseeds for its high oil content and quality, and is grown widely in tropical and subtropical areas as an important source of oil and protein. However, the molecular biology of sesame is largely unexplored.ResultsHere, we report a high-quality genome sequence of sesame assembled de novo with a contig N50 of 52.2 kb and a scaffold N50 of 2.1 Mb, containing an estimated 27,148 genes. The results reveal novel, independent whole genome duplication and the absence of the Toll/interleukin-1 receptor domain in resistance genes. Candidate genes and oil biosynthetic pathways contributing to high oil content were discovered by comparative genomic and transcriptomic analyses. These revealed the expansion of type 1 lipid transfer genes by tandem duplication, the contraction of lipid degradation genes, and the differential expression of essential genes in the triacylglycerol biosynthesis pathway, particularly in the early stage of seed development. Resequencing data in 29 sesame accessions from 12 countries suggested that the high genetic diversity of lipid-related genes might be associated with the wide variation in oil content. Additionally, the results shed light on the pivotal stage of seed development, oil accumulation and potential key genes for sesamin production, an important pharmacological constituent of sesame.ConclusionsAs an important species from the order Lamiales and a high oil crop, the sesame genome will facilitate future research on the evolution of eudicots, as well as the study of lipid biosynthesis and potential genetic improvement of sesame.