Annotation of the Arabidopsis Genome

The Arabidopsis Genome Sequencing Project was officially completed in late 2000, leading to the publication of a landmark paper describing, in broad outline, many salient features of the Arabidopsis genome (Arabidopsis Genome Initiative AGI, 2000). However, the genome annotation, generated by the individual sequencing centers, was heterogeneous, both in terms of gene structure predictions and terminology used in their description. In response, The Institute for Genomic Research (TIGR) was funded by the National Science Foundation to carry out a whole-genome reannotation that would be of a uniform high standard and consistency, eliminating the heterogeneity that had accumulated over time in the public databases.