Itay Gonda Lab
Genetics and genomics of aromatic and medicinal plants
Agricultural
Research
Organization
Volcani center
Itay Gonda, Ph.D.
Group leader
Itay Gonda, Ph.D.
Group leader
Great News! Sweet basil genome paper is now published in The Plant Journal
Titled: “Chromosome-level assembly of basil genome unveils the genetic variation driving Genovese and Thai aroma types,” we have assembled sweet basil pseudo-molecules. The genome, alongside valuable tools, is available via the BasilBase portal. Special thanks to Jing Zhang (genome assembly), Mohamad Abu-Abied (functional analysis), David Chaimovitsh (germplasm development), Gon Carmi (BasilBase development), Prof. Nativ Dudai (conceptualization and common sense) and Susan R. Strickler (conceptualization and fundraising). Check the publications page.
About the lab
People have been used plants for medicine, perfumes and as aromatic herbs for thousands of years. The biological activity attributed to these plants is a result of various chemical compounds known as specialized metabolites. Aromatic and medicinal plants are valued for their ability to accumulate such compounds which are beneficial for humans. They possess a huge chemical diversity that contributes to our kitchen, medicine cabinet and perfume bouquet. This diversity presents both between species and within a species. The genetic mechanisms that drive this chemical diversity are largely unknown. Also, the active compounds in some of the important plants are unknown or their biosynthetic pathway is still a riddle.
Our goal is to bring state-of-the-art methods to the field of Aromatic and Medicinal Plants to promote both science and breeding. That includes (but not limited to) sequencing-based genotyping and QTL mapping, transcriptomic analyses, metabolomics and genome editing.