Sequence-indexed insertional libraries in maize (Zea mays L.) are fundamental resources for functional genetics studies. Here, we constructed a novel Mutator (Mu) insertional library in B73 inbred background designated BonnMu. By sequencing of 1,152 transposon tagged F2-families we identified 41,000 high-quality germinal Mu insertions covering >16,300 (37%) of all high quality maize gene models of maize.
In the present research article we demonstrated for the first time that (1) transposon insertion hotspots are conserved between different maize genotypes by comparing Mu tagged genes of B73 (BonnMu) and W22 (UniformMu) and that (2) the majority of Mu insertion sites (75%) are located closer to the 5’ UTR transcription start site, than to the start codon of affected genes thus correlating with open chromatin especially in the 5’ region of genes. All seed stocks of this novel genetic resource will be made accessible via MaizeGDB.org. A unique feature of our collection of insertion mutants is that for all families photos of seedling phenotypes will be linked to the database entries.
You can find more here: http://www.plantphysiol.org/content/early/2020/08/07/pp.20.00478