Molecular breeding for the genetic improvement of forage crops and turf : proceedings of the 4. international symposium on the molecular breeding of forage and turf, a satellite workshop of the 20. International Grassland Congress, 2005, Aberystwyth, Wales

Foreword 7; Keynote presentations 17; Objectives and benefits of molecular breeding in forage species 19; T. Lubberstedt; Introgression mapping in the grasses 31; I.P. King, J. King, I.P. Armstead, J.A. Harper, L.A. Roberts, H. Thomas, H.J. Ougham, R.N. Jones, A. Thomas, BJ Moore, L. Huang and I.S. Donnison; QTL analysis and trait dissection in ryegrasses (Lolium spp.) 43; T. Yamada and J.W. Forster; Translational genomics for alfalfa varietal improvement 55; G.D. May; Application of molecular technologies in forage plant breeding 63; K.F. Smith, J.W. Forster, M.P. Dobrowolski, N.O.I. Cogan, N.R. Bannan, E. van Zijll de Jong, M. Emmerling and G.C. Spangenberg; A computational pipeline for the development of comparative anchor tagged sequence (CATS) markers 73; L. Schauser, J. Fredslund, L. Heegaard Madsen, N. Sandal and J. Stougaard; Future directions in the molecular breeding of forage and turf 83; G.C. Spangenberg, J.W. Forster, D. Edwards, U. John, A. Mouradov, M. Emmerling, J. Batley, S. Felitti, N.O.I. Cogan, K.F. Smith and M.P. Dobrowolski; Application of molecular markers in genetic resources management of perennial ryegrass 99; R. van Treuren; Section 1: Objectives, benefits and targets of molecular breeding 111; Leaves of high yielding perennial ryegrass contain less aggregated Rubisco than S23 113; A. Kingston-Smith and P.W. Wilkins; Variability in quantity and composition of water soluble carbohydrates among Irish accessions and European varieties of perennial ryegrass 114; S. McGrath, S. Barth, A. Frohlich, M. Francioso, S.A. Lamorte and T.R. Hodkinson; Introgression breeding for improvement of winter hardiness in Lolium/Festuca complex using androgenenesis 115; T. Yamada, Y.D. Guo and Y. Mizukami; A new napier grass stunting disease in Kenya associated with phytoplasma 116; A.B. Orodho, S.I. Ajanga, P. Jones and P.O. Mudavadi; Studies of seed characteristics of ecotypes of lucerne, Bromus and Agropyron in response to Fusarium oxysporum and F. solani 117; M.A. Alizadeh; Genetic analysis of the interaction between the host perennial ryegrass and the crown rust pathogen (Puccinia coronata f.sp. lolii) 118; P.M. Dracatos, J.L. Dumsday, R.S. Olle, N.O.I. Cogan, M.P. Dobrowolski, K.F. Smith and J.W. Forster; Molecular characterisation of bacterial wilt resistance in Lolium multiflorum Lam. 119; B. Studer, B. Boller, F. Widmer, U.K. Posselt, E. Bauer and R. Kolliker; Discriminating stay-green grasses using hyperspectral imaging and chemometrics 120; J. Taylor, B. Moore, J.J. Rowland, H. Thomas and H. Ougham; Non-destructive assessment of quality and yield for grass-breeding 121; A.G.T. Schut, M.J.J. Pustjens, P. Wilkins, J. Meuleman, P. Reyns, A. Lovatt and G.W.A.M. van der Heijden; Root senescence in red clover (Trifolium pratense L.) 122; K.J. Webb, E. Tuck and S. Heywood; Tropical vine legume-maize mixtures for enhanced silage in temperate climates 123; H. Riday. Section 2: Linkage/physical mapping and map-based cloning of genes 125; Development of simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers and their use to assess genetic diversity in apomictic Guineagrass (Panicum maximum Jacq.) 127; M. Ebina, K. Kouki, S. Tsuruta, M. Takahara, M. Kobayashi, T. Yamamoto, K. Nakajima and H. Nakagawa 127; Construction of microsatellite-enriched libraries for tropical forage species and characterization of the repetitive sequences found in Brachiaria brizantha 128; L. Jungmann, C.B. do Valle, P.R. Laborda, R.M.S. Resende, L. Jank and A.P. de Souza; Isolation of SSR markers from Zoysiagrass 129; H. Cai, N. Yuyama and M. Inoue; Development of SSR markers for variety identification in Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) 130; M. Inoue, N. Yuyama and H. Cai; Development of EST-derived simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers in Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) 131; M. Hirata, Y. Miura, T. Takamizo and M. Fujimori; Development of a microsatellite library in Lolium perenne 132; J. King, I.P. King, D. Thorogood, L. Roberts, K. Skot and K. Elborough; Tall fescue expressed sequence tag and simple sequence repeats: important resources for grass species 133; M.C. Saha, J.C. Zwonitzer, K. Chekhovskiy and M.A.R. Mian; Development of EST and AFLP markers linked to a gene for resistance to ryegrass blast (Pyricularia sp.) in Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) 134; Y. Miura, C. Ding, R. Ozaki, M. Hirata, M. Fujimori, H. Cai and K. Mizuno; Construction and exploitation of a bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) library for Lolium perenne (perennial ryegrass) 135; K. Farrar, A.M. Thomas, M.O. Humphreys and I.S. Donnison; Characterisation of perennial ryegrass parental inbred lines for generating recombinant inbred lines for fine mapping and gene cloning 136; U.C.M. Anhalt, S. Barth, T. Schwarzacher and J.S. Heslop-Harrison; A high-density SSR linkage map of red clover and its transferability to other legumes 137; S. Isobe, S. Sato, E. Asamizu, I. Klimenko, N.N. Kozlov, K. Okumura and S. Tabata; Estimation of the coefficient of double-reduction in autotetraploid lucerne 138; R. Ayadi, P. Barre, C. Huyghe and B. Julier; A core AFLP map of aposporic tetraploid Paspalum notatum (Bahiagrass) 139; J.P.A. Ortiz, J. Stein, E.J. Martinez, S.C. Pessino and C.L. Quarin; Repulsion-phase linkage analysis of tetraploid creeping bentgrass (Agrostis stolonifera L.) 140; S.E. Warnke, N. Chakraborty and G. Jung; Towards a genetic map in creeping bentgrass based on SSRs, AFLPs and RFLPs 141; H. Zhao and S. Bughrara; Integration of perennial ryegrass (L. perenne) genetic maps using gene-associated SNPs 142; A.C. Vecchies, R.C. Ponting, M.C. Drayton, N.O.I. Cogan, K.F. Smith, G.C. Spangenberg and J.W. Forster; Construction and comparison of genetic linkage maps of four F1 populations of Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) 143; M. Vandewalle; Section 3: QTL analysis and trait dissection 145; QTLs for morphogenetic traits in Medicago truncatula 147; B. Julier, T. Huguet, J.M. Prosperi, P. Barre, G. Cardinet and C. Huyghe; A Medicago truncatula population segregating for aluminum tolerance 148; M. Sledge, B. Narasimhamoorthy and G. Jiang; Genetic mapping in tetraploid alfalfa: Results and prospects 149; E.C. Brummer, J.G. Robins, B. Alarcon Zuniga and D. Luth; Quantitative trait locus analysis of morphogenetic and developmental traits in an SSR- and AFLP-based genetic map of white clover (Trifolium repens L.) 150; M.T Abberton, N.O.I. Cogan, K.F. Smith, G. Kearney, A.H. Marshall, A. Williams, T.P.T. Michaelson-Yeates, C. Bowen, E.S. Jones, A.C. Vecchies and J.W. Forster. Changes in gene expression during acclimation to cold temperatures in white clover (Trifolium repens L.) 151; M. Lowe, R.P. Collins and M.T. Abberton; QTL analysis of mineral content and grass tetany potential in Leymus wildryes 152; S.R. Larson and H.F. Mayland; QTL analysis of mineral content in perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) 153; N.O.I. Cogan, A.C. Vecchies, T. Yamada, K.F. Smith and J.W. Forster; A glucanase gene cosegregates with a QTL for crown rust resistance in L. perenne 154; H. Muylle, J. Baert, E. Van Bockstaele and I. Roldan-Ruiz; Mapping water-soluble carbohydrate content in perennial ryegrass 155; L. Turner, J. Gallagher, I. Armstead, A. Cairns and M. Humphreys; Quantitative trait loci for vegetative traits in perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) 156; A.M. Sartie, H.S. Easton, M.J. Faville and C. Matthew; Approaches for associating molecular polymorphisms with phenotypic traits based on linkage disequilibrium in natural populations of Lolium perenne 157; L. Skot, J. Humphreys, I.P. Armstead, M.O. Humphreys, J.A. Gallagher and I.D. Thomas; Identification of quantitative trait loci for flowering time in a field-grown Lolium perenne x Lolium multiflorum mapping population 158; R.N. Brown, R.E. Barker, S.E. Warnke, L.A. Brilman, M.A.R. Mian, S.C. Sim and G. Jung; Crown rust resistance of Italian ryegrass cultivar 'Axis' to an isolate from Japan 159; T. Kiyoshi, M. Hirata, T. Takamizo, H. Sato, Y. Mano and M. Fujimori; Locating, and utilising Festuca pratensis genes for winter hardiness for the future development of more persistent high quality Lolium cultivars 160; M.W. Humphreys, D. Gasior, A. Kosmala, O.A. Rognli, Z. Zwierzykowski and M. Rapacz; QTL analysis of vernalisation requirement and heading traits in Festuca pratensis Huds. 161; A. Ergon, C. Fang, O. Jorgensen, T.S. Aamlid and O.A. Rognli; Consistency of QTL for dollar spot resistance between greenhouse and field inoculations, multiple locations, and different population sizes in creeping bentgrass 162; N. Chakraborty, J. Bae, J. Curley, S. Warnke, M. Casler, S. Bughrara and G. Jung; Section 4: Genomics, model species, gene discovery and functional analysis 163; Structural and functional genomic research in model legume plants: The National BioResource Project (NBRP) in Japan 165; S. Tsuruta, M. Hashiguchi and R Akashi; Identification of putative AtTT2 R2R3-MYB transcription factor orthologues in tanniferous tissues of L. corniculatus var. japonicus cv Gifu 166; D.N Bryant, P. Bailey, P. Morris, M. Robbins, C. Martin and T. Wang; Foliar expression of candidate genes involved in condensed tannin biosynthesis in white clover (Trifolium repens) 167; S.N. Panter, J. Simmonds, A. Winkworth, A. Mouradov and G.C. Spangenberg; Discovery, isolation and characterisation of promoters in white clover (Trifolium repens) 168; C.M. Labandera, Y.H. Lin, E. Ludlow, M. Emmerling, U. John, P.W. Sale, C. Pallaghy and G.C. Spangenberg; Application of molecular markers derived from Medicago truncatula in white clover (Trifolium repens L.) 169; C. Jones and M.T. Abberton; Gene-associated single nucleotide polymorphism discovery in white clover (T. repens L.) 170; M.C. Drayton, R.C. Ponting, A.C. Vecchies, T.C. Wilkinson, J. George, N.O.I. Cogan, N.R. Bannan, K.F. Smith, G.C. Spangenberg and J.W. Forster; A molecular study of alfalfa megasporogenesis 171; D. Rosellini, S. Capomaccio and F. Veronesi; The efficacy of GeneThresher[registered] methylation filtering technology in the plant kingdom 172; U. Warek, J.A. Bedell, M.A. Budiman, A.N. Nunberg, R.W. Citek, D. Robbins, N. Lakey and P.D. Rabinowicz; Screening of perennial grasses and a mutant maize collection by Fourier-Transformed InfraRed (FTIR) spectroscopy for improved biofuel traits 173; S.C. Thain, P. Morris, S. Hawkins, C. Morris and I.S. Donnison. A proposal for an international transcriptome initiative for forage and turf: microarray tools for expression profiling in ryegrass, clover and grass endophytes 174; T. Webster, N. Nguyen, C. Rhodes, S. Felitti, R. Chapman, D. Edwards and G.C. Spangenberg; Isolation and characterisation of genes encoding malate synthesis and transport determinants in the aluminium-tolerant Australian weeping-grass (Microlaena stipoides) 175; R.M. Polotnianka, E. Ribarev, L. Mackin, K.A. Sivakumaran, G.D. Nugent, U.P. John and G.C. Spangenberg; Novel genotypes of the subtropical grass Eragrostis curvula for the analysis of apomixis (diplospory) 176; S. Cardone, P. Polci, J.P. Selva, M. Mecchia, S. Pessino, P. Voigt, G.C. Spangenberg and V. Echenique; Discovery and functional categorisation of expressed sequence tags from flowers of Eragrostis curvula genotypes showing different ploidy levels and reproductive modes 177; V. Echenique, S. Felitti, N. Paniego, L. Martelotto, S. Pessino, D. Zanazzi, P. Fernandez, M. Diaz, P. Polci and G.C. Spangenberg; A comprehensive analysis of gene expression and genomic alterations in a newly formed autotetraploid of Paspalum notatum 178; L.G. Martelotto, J.P.A. Ortiz, F. Espinoza, C.L. Quarin and S.C. Pessino; Gene discovery and molecular dissection of fructan metabolism in perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) 179; J. Chalmers, A. Lidgett, X. Johnson, K. Terdich, N. Cummings, Y.Y. Cao, K. Fulgueras, M. Emmerling, T. Sawbridge, E.K. Ong, A. Mouradov and G.C. Spangenberg; Gene discovery and molecular dissection of lignin biosynthesis in perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) 180; A. Lidgett, M. Emmerling, R. Heath, R. McInnes, D. Lynch, A. Bartkowski, K. Fulgueras, T. Sawbridge, E.K. Ong, K.F. Smith, A. Mouradov and G.C. Spangenberg; An in silico DNA sequence comparison of the perennial ryegrass and rice genomes 181; M.J. Faville; The identification of genetic synteny between Lolium perenne chromosome 7 and rice chromosome 6 genomic regions that have major effects on heading-date 182; I.P. Armstead, L.B. Turner, L. Skot, I.S. Donnison, M.O. Humphreys and I.P. King; Towards understanding photoperiodic response in grasses 183; M. Gagic, I. Kardailsky, N. Forester, B. Veit and J. Putterill; Controlled flowering project for Lolium perenne at Agresearch: an overview 184; I. Karadailsky, B. Veit, N. Forester, M. Gagic, K. Richardson, M. Faville and G. Bryan; The investigation of flowering control in late/rare flowering Lolium perenne 185; S. Byrne, I. Donnison, L.J. Mur and E. Guiney; Isolation of candidate genes involved in cold temperature response in Festuca pratensis Huds., using suppression subtractive hybridisation and microarray approaches 186; H. Rudi, V. Alm, L. Opseth, A. Larsen and O.A. Rognli; Isolation and characterization of a CBF gene from perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) 187; Y. Xiong and S. Fei; Isolation and characterisation of genes encoding ice recrystallisation inhibition proteins (IRIPs) in the cryophilic antarctic hair-grass (Deschampsia antarctica) and the temperate perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) 188; U.P. John, R.M. Polotnianka, K.A. Sivakumaran, L. Mackin, M.J. Kuiper, J.P. Talbot, O. Chew, G.D. Nugent, N.O.I. Cogan, M.C. Drayton, J.W. Forster, G.E. Schrauf and G.C. Spangenberg; Development of genetic markers for drought tolerance in Festuca-Lolium complexes 189; J.P. Wang and S.S. Bughrara; Monitoring of gene expression profiles and identification of candidate genes involved in drought tolerance in Festuca mairei with cDNA-AFLP 190; J.P. Wang and S.S. Bughrara; Section 5: Use of molecular markers and bioinformatics in breeding 191; Towards a comparative map of white clover (Trifolium repens) and barrel medic (Medicago truncatula) 193; M. Febrer, G. Jenkins, M. Abberton and D. Milbourne; Use of cross-species amplification markers for pollen-mediated gene flow determination in Trifolium polymorphum Poiret 194; M. Dalla Rizza, D. Real, R. Reyno and K. Quesenberry; Clover ASTRA: a web-based resource for Trifolium EST analysis 195; G.C. Spangenberg, T. Sawbridge, E.K. Ong, C.G. Love, T.A. Erwin, E.G. Logan and D. Edwards. SNP discovery and haplotypic variation in full-length herbage quality genes of perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) 196; R.C. Ponting, M.C. Drayton, N.O.I. Cogan, G.C. Spangenberg, K.F. Smith and J.W. Forster; Development and use of a tool for automated alignments of genes in the rice BAC's GenBank card against other species 197; P. Barre, G. Darrieutort, J. Auzanneau and B. Julier; Screening genes for association with loci for nitrogen-use efficiency in perennial ryegrass by pyrosequencing[trademark] 198; O. Dolstra, D. Dees, J.-D. Driesprong and E.N. van Loo; Gene-associated single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) discovery in perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) 199; J.W. Forster, N.O.I. Cogan, A.C. Vecchies, R.C. Ponting, M.C. Drayton, J. George, J.L. Dumsday, G.C. Spangenberg and K.F. Smith; Development and testing of novel chloroplast markers for perennial ryegrass from de novo sequencing and in silico sequences 200; S. McGrath, T.R. Hodkinson and S. Barth; Ryegrass ASTRA: a web-based resource for Lolium EST analysis 201; G.C. Spangenberg, T. Sawbridge, E.K. Ong, C.G. Love, T.A. Erwin, E.G. Logan and D. Edwards; Positive effect of increased AFLP diversity among parental plants on yield of polycross progenies in perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) 202; R. Kolliker, B. Boller and F. Widmer; Genomic constitution of Festulolium varieties 203; D. Kopecky, V. Cernoch, R. Capka and J. Dolezel; Genetic changes over breeding generations of Festulolium 204; M. Ghesquiere, P. Barre and L. Barrot; Phenotypic variation within local populations of meadow fescue shows significant associations with allele frequencies at AFLP loci 205; S. Fjellheim, A.B. Blomlie, P. Marum and O.A. Rognli; Marker-assisted selection for fibre concentration in smooth bromegrass 206; C. Stendal, M.D. Casler and G. Jung; Endophyte ASTRA: a web-based resource for Neotyphodium and Epichloe EST analysis 207; K. Shields, M. Ramsperger, S.A. Felitti, C.G. Love, T.A. Erwin, D. Singh, E.G. Logan, D. Edwards and G.C. Spangenberg; Section 6: Genetics and breeding for symbiosis 209; Genetic variation in the perennial ryegrass fungal endophyte Neotyphodium lolii 211; E. van Zijll de Jong, N.R. Bannan, A.V. Stewart, K.F.M. Reed, M.P. Dobrowolski, K.F. Smith, G.C. Spangenberg and J.W. Forster; Isolation and characterisation of novel BTB domain protein encoding genes from fungal grass endophytes 212; M. Ramsperger, S.A. Felitti, D. Edwards and G.C. Spangenberg; Genetic analysis of the interaction between perennial ryegrass and the fungal endophyte Neotyphodium lolii 213; E. van Zijll de Jong, A.C. Vecchies, M.P. Dobrowolski, N.O.I. Cogan, K.F. Smith, G.C. Spangenberg and J.W. Forster; Microarray-based transcriptome analysis of the interaction between perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) and the fungal endophyte Neotyphodium lolii 214; S.A. Felitti, P. Tian, T. Webster, D. Edwards and G.C. Spangenberg; A high-throughput gene silencing approach for studying the interaction between perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) and the fungal endophyte Neotyphodium lolii 215; S.A. Felitti, P. Tian, D. Edwards and G.C. Spangenberg; Metabolome analysis of the interaction between perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) and the fungal endophyte Neotyphodium lolii 216; P. Tian, S.A. Felitti, M.P. Dobrowolski, K.F. Smith, D. Edwards, R. Hall, J. Kopka and G.C. Spangenberg; Endophyte effects on antioxidants and membrane leakage in tall fescue during drought 217; C.P. West, R.D. Carson, C.A. Guerber and B. de los Reyes. Section 7: Transgenics for research and breeding including risk assessment 219; Role of the BANYULS(BAN) gene from Arabidopsis thaliana in transgenic Alfalfa expression of anthocyanins and proanthocyanidins 221; S.M. Hesamzadeh Hejazi, S. Arcioni and F. Paolocci; Development of alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) transgenic plants expressing a Bacillus thuringiensis endotoxin and their evaluation against alfalfa caterpillar (Colias lesbia) 222; F. Ardila, M.C. Gomez, M.J. Dieguez, E.M. Pagano, M. Turica, R. Lecuona, V. Arolfo, D. Basigalup, C. Vazquez Rovere, E. Hopp, P. Franzone and R.D. Rios; Increased cuticular wax accumulation and enhanced drought tolerance in transgenic alfalfa by overexpression of a transcription factor gene 223; Z.-Y. Wang, J.-Y. Zhang, C. Broeckling, E. Blancaflor, M. Sledge and L. Sumner; Molecular breeding of white clover for transgenic resistance to Alfalfa mosaic virus and natural resistance to Clover yellow vein virus 224; P. Chu, G. Zhao and G.C. Spangenberg; Molecular breeding of transgenic virus-immune white clover (Trifolium repens) cultivars 225; M. Emmerling, P. Chu, K.F. Smith, C. Binnion, M. Ponnampalam, P. Measham, Z.Y. Lin, N. Bannan, T. Wilkinson and G.C. Spangenberg; Polyphenolic phenomena: transgenic analysis of some of the factors that regulate the cell-specific accumulation of condensed tannins (proanthocyanidins) in forage crops 226; M.P. Robbins, G. Allison, D. Bryant and P. Morris; Minimising bloat through development of white clover (T. repens) with high levels of condensed tannins 227; M.T. O'Donoghue, C. Spillane and E. Guiney; Production and analysis of transgenic white clover (Trifolium repens) plants over-expressing organic acid biosynthetic genes 228; C.M. Labandera, S. Panter, A. Winkworth, J. Simmonds, A. Mouradov, U. John, P.W. Sale and G.C. Spangenberg; LXR[trademark] white clover: development of transgenic white clover (Trifolium repens) with delayed leaf senescence 229; Y.H. Lin, J. Chalmers, E. Ludlow, C. Pallaghy, G. Schrauf, Pablo Rush, A.M. Garcia, A. Mouradov and G.C. Spangenberg; Genetic transformation of rhodesgrass (Chloris gayana Kunth.) by particle bombardment 230; J. Matsumoto, S. Tsuruta, T. Gondo and R. Akashi; Modulation of the gibberellin content in transgenic turf-type bahiagrass for improved turf characteristics and reduced mowing requirements 231; F. Altpeter, M. Agharkar and H. Zhang; Inducible over-expression of the CBF3 abiotic stress regulon in transgenic bahiagrass (Paspalum notatum Flugge) 232; V.A. James and F. Altpeter; Genetic engineering for breeding for drought resistance and salt tolerance in Agropyron spp. (wheatgrass) 233; M. Fugui, Y. Jinfeng and H. Xiuwen; A novel genotype independent protocol for in vitro plant regeneration from mature seed derived callus of tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.) 234; S. Chennareddy, R.V. Sairam and S.L. Goldman; Efficient in vitro regeneration system from seed derived callus of perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) and annual ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum) 235; S. Chennareddy, R.V. Sairam and S.L. Goldman; Nylon mesh as an improved support for bombarded calli or cell suspensions 236; S.J. Dalton, P. Robson, M. Buanafina, A.J.E. Bettany, E. Timms, D. Wiffen and P. Morris; A comparison of hygromycin and paromomycin selection strategies in the genetic transformation of seven Lolium, Festuca, Poa, and Agrostis species 237; S.J. Dalton, P. Robson, M. Buanafina, A.J.E. Bettany, E. Timms and P. Morris; Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation of perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) 238; H. Sato, M. Fujimori, Y. Mano, T. Kiyoshi and T. Takamizo. Manipulating the phenolic acid content and digestibility of forage grasses by targeted expression of fungal cell wall degrading enzymes 239; M.M. de O. Buanafina, P. Morris, T. Langdon, S. Dalton, B. Hauck and H. Porter; Improving forage quality of tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea) by genetic manipulation of lignin biosynthesis 240; Z.-Y. Wang, L. Chen, C.-K. Auh, A. Hopkins and P. Dowling; Crown rust resistance in transgenic Italian ryegrass (L. multiflorum) expressing a rice chitinase gene and crosses with cytoplasmic male sterile hybrid ryegrass 241; W. Takahashi, M. Fujimori, Y. Miura, T. Komatsu, S. Sugita, A. Arakawa, Y. Nishizawa, H. Sato, Y. Mano, T. Hibi and T. Takamizo; Discovery, isolation and characterisation of promoters from perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) 242; A. Lidgett, N. Petrovska, J. Chalmers, N. Cummings and G.C. Spangenberg; Development and field evaluation of transgenic ryegrass (Lolium spp.) with down-regulation of main pollen allergens 243; N. Petrovska, A. Mouradov, Z.Y. Wang, K.F. Smith and G.C. Spangenberg; Shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted? Risk assessment and regulation for transgenic forages 244; C.J. Pollock; Assessing the risk posed by transgenic virus-resistant Trifolium repens to native grasslands in Southeast Australia 245; R.C. Godfree, P.W.G. Chu and A.G. Young; Pollen-mediated gene flow from genetically modified herbicide resistant creeping bentgrass 246; L.S. Watrud, E.H. Lee, A. Fairbrother, C. Burdick, J.R. Reichman, M. Bollman, M. Storm, G. King and P.K. van de Water; Use of cellular automata modelling approaches to understand potential impacts of GM grasses on grassland communities 247; R. Colasanti, R. Hunt and L.S. Watrud; Section 8: Genetic diversity, genetic resources and breeding systems 249; The importance of exotic forage germplasm in feeding New Zealand's livestock 251; J. Lancashire; Application of molecular diversity in a forage grass breeding program 252; A.A. Hopkins and M.C. Saha; Databases for managing genetic resources collections and mapping populations of forage and related species 253; I. Thomas, H. Ougham and D. Peltier; The use of molecular markers in genetic variability analysis of a collection of Dactylis glomerata L. 254; R. Costa, G. Pereira, C. Vicente and M.M. Tavares de Sousa; Genetic diversity in colonial bentgrass (Agrostis capillaris L.) revealed by EcoRI/MseI and PstI/MseI AFLP markers 256; H. Zhao and S. Bughrara; Genetic diversity in zoysiagrass ecotypes based on morphological characteristics and SSR markers 257; M. Hashiguchi, S. Tsuruta, T. Matsuo, M. Ebina, M. Kobayashi, H. Akamine and R. Akashi; Utilization of SSR to distinguish alfalfa cultivars 258; G.R. Bauchan, C. He and Z-L. Xia; Genetic diversity among alfalfa cultivars using SSR markers 259; S. Flajoulot, J. Ronfort, P. Baudouin, T. Huguet, P. Barre, C. Huyghe and B. Julier; Evaluation of genetic diversity in white clover (Trifolium repens L.) through measurement of simple sequence repeat (SSR) polymorphism 260; J. George, E. van Zijll de Jong, T.C. Wilkinson, M.P. Dobrowolksi, N.O.I. Cogan, K.F. Smith and J.W. Forster; Genetic and phenotypic diversity of Swiss red clover landraces 261; D. Herrmann, B. Boller, F. Widmer and R. Kolliker; Improving the utilisation of germplasm of Trifolium spumosum L. by the development of a core collection using ecogeographical and molecular techniques 262; K. Ghamkhar, R. Snowball and S.J. Bennett. Molecular characterization and tissue culture regeneration ability of the USA Arachis pintoi (Krap. and Greg.) germplasm collection 263; M.A. Carvalho, K.H. Quesenberry and M. Gallo-Meagher; Genetic and molecular characterization of temperate and tropical forage maize inbred lines 264; B. Alarcon-Zuniga, E. Valadez-Moctezuma, T. Cervantes-Martinez, T. Cervantes-Santana and M. Mendoza; Random amplified polymorphic DNA analysis in section Pnigma of the genus Bromus L. 265; M. Tuna, O. Barzani, K.P. Vogel and A. Golan-Goldhirsh; Genetic characterization of prairie grass (Bromus catharticus Vahl.) natural populations 266; R. Sellaro, E.M. Pagano, B. Rosso, P. Rimieri and R.D. Rios; Analysis of Bromus inermis populations using Amplified Fragment Length Polymorphism markers to identify duplicate accessions 267; V.L. Bradley and T.J. Kisha; Characterisation of naturalised populations of Thinopyrum ponticum Podp through indexes obtained under saline stress 268; S.M. Pistorale, A.N. Andres and O. Bazzigalupi; Genetic structure of Mongolian Wheatgrass (Agroypron mongolicum Keng) in Inner Mongolia of China 269; Y. Jinfeng, Z. Mengli and X. Xinmin; RFLP analyses of chloroplast DNA of the crested wheatgrasses 270; K.P. Vogel, D.J. Lee and C.A. Caha; Tracing the origins of Timothy species (Phleum sp.) 271; A.V. Stewart, A. Joachimiak and N. Ellison; Genetic diversity and heterosis in perennial ryegrass 272; U.K. Posselt; Population genetics of perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.): differentiation of pasture and turf cultivars 273; M.P. Dobrowolski, N.R. Bannan, R.C. Ponting, J.W. Forster and K.F. Smith; Analysis of genetic changes in single-variety ryegrass swards 274; C. Straub, G. Boutet and C. Huyghe; Genetic variability between adapted populations of annual ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam) in Argentina 275; A. Andres. B. Rosso, J. De Battista and M. Acuna; Does AFLP diversity reflect consanguinity within meadow fescue breeding material? 276; B. Boller and R. Kolliker; Genetic diversity in Festuca species as shown by AFLP 277; X.Q. Zhang and S.S. Bughrara; Analyses of genetic change in grass-clover based systems over time 278; A. Ghesquiere, K. Mehdikhanlov, M. Malengier and J. De Riek; Keyword index 279; Author index 283.