Molecular Dissection of Complex Traits / Edition 1

by Andrew H. Paterson

Overview

In the past 10 years, contemporary geneticists using new molecular tools have been able to resolve complex traits into individual genetic components and describe each such component in detail. Molecular Dissection of Complex Traits summarizes the state of the art in molecular analysis of complex traits (QTL mapping), placing new developments in this field within the context of their historical origins. Leading authorities address central themes in analysis of complex phenotypes, and case histories of important work in this burgeoning field are presented by the principal investigators.
The book is divided into three sections:

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780849376863
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	08/29/1997
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	324
Product dimensions:	7.00(w) x 10.00(h) x (d)

Table of Contents

Introduction: Of Blending, Beans, and Bristles: The Foundations of QTL Mapping. Fundamental Principles: Molecular Tools for the Study of Complex Traits. Experimental Design Considerations in Analysis of Complex Traits. Computational Tools for Study of Complex Traits. QTL Mapping in Outbred Pedigrees. Mapping QTLs in Autopolyploids. QTL Analysis under Linkage Equilibrium. Molecular Analysis of Epistasis. QTL Mapping in DNA Marker-Assisted Plant and Animal Improvement. QTL Analyses: Power, Precision, and Accuracy. High-Resolution Mapping of QTLs. Compilation and Distribution of Data on Complex Traits. Case Histories: Case History in Plant Domestication: Sorghum, An Example of Cereal Evolution. Case History in Crop Improvement: Yield Heterosis in Maize. Case History in Germplasm Introgression: Tomato Genetics and Breeding Using Nearly Isogenic Introgression Lines Derived from Wild Species. Case History in Genetics of Long-Lived Plants: Molecular Approaches to Domestication of a Fast-Growing Forest Tree: Populus. Case History in Animal Improvement: Mapping Complex Traits in Ruminants. Case History in Animal Improvement: Genetic Mapping of QTLs for Growth and Fatness in the Pig. Case History in Humans: Mapping QTLs for Complex Traits in Humans. Social Impact of QTL Mapping: From Malthus to Mapping: Prospects for an Impact of Genome Analysis on the World Food Supply. Ethical Consequences of Mapping QTLs for Complex Human Traits. Epilogue: Prospects for Cloning the Genetic Determinants of QTLs. Index.

Editorial Reviews

Reviewer: Michael Cummings, PhD (University of Illinois at Chicago)
Description: The analysis and mapping of complex genetic traits has accelerated in recent years with the use of recombinant DNA methods. These quantitative trait loci (QTLs) are being mapped in plants and animals, and require the application of conventional genetics, molecular biology, statistics, and computer tools.
Purpose: This book provides an overview of several aspects of the molecular analysis of QTLs, including the background, case histories, and social and ethical aspects of mapping complex traits.
Audience: It is intended for geneticists and molecular biologists interested in genomics and gene mapping. Because of its general nature, it will perhaps be most useful to pre-doctoral and postdoctoral students as an introduction to the field.
Features: The broad coverage given the topic is perhaps the best feature of the book, but in other ways it is also its weakest point. The chapters are short overviews covering one aspect of QTL mapping, and often fail to place the material into a wider context. The chapter on mapping complex traits in humans is a short review of QTL mapping and linkage analysis of diabetes using a positional cloning model. Nothing is said about work on other complex traits, other models, or mapping such traits.
Assessment: Overall, the book does an adequate job of covering the background and recent history of one of the most exciting area of genetics, but those who want to learn how to do such mapping will have to look elsewhere.

Doody's Review Service

2 Stars from Doody

The analysis and mapping of complex genetic traits has accelerated in recent years with the use of recombinant DNA methods. These quantitative trait loci (QTLs) are being mapped in plants and animals, and require the application of conventional genetics, molecular biology, statistics, and computer tools. This book provides an overview of several aspects of the molecular analysis of QTLs, including the background, case histories, and social and ethical aspects of mapping complex traits. It is intended for geneticists and molecular biologists interested in genomics and gene mapping. Because of its general nature, it will perhaps be most useful to pre-doctoral and postdoctoral students as an introduction to the field. The broad coverage given the topic is perhaps the best feature of the book, but in other ways it is also its weakest point. The chapters are short overviews covering one aspect of QTL mapping, and often fail to place the material into a wider context. The chapter on mapping complex traits in humans is a short review of QTL mapping and linkage analysis of diabetes using a positional cloning model. Nothing is said about work on other complex traits, other models, or mapping such traits. Overall, the book does an adequate job of covering the background and recent history of one of the most exciting area of genetics, but those who want to learn how to do such mapping will have to look elsewhere.

Michael Cummings

Summarizes the current status of a technique for resolving complex traits into individual genetic components and describing each component in detail. Traces the history of the field, explores central themes in the analysis of complex phenotypes, and presents case histories. Contributors draw on their own experience to discuss the conception, design, execution, and analysis of experiments; integrate modern techniques in DNA analysis with classical genetic concepts; offer perspectives on how the technique can be applied to agriculture and medicine; and present examples from plant, human, and animal studies. Addressed to student or professional biologists with a knowledge of genetics and the methods and principles of genome analysis. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.

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