Wallaby Genome Project

About the Project

The BCM-HGSC sequenced the genome of the tammar wallaby (Macropus eugenii) as part of the Tammar Wallaby Genome Sequencing Consortium, a collaboration between the BCM-HGSC and the Australian Genome Research Facility Ltd. (AGRF). The genome sequence and analysis was published in 2011.

The low coverage draft sequence expanded existing wallaby genetic resources and fostered exploration of the unique biological features of this marsupial, centered on reproduction, fertility, seasonal breeding, pregnancy, lactation, sex determination and differentiation.

DNA for construction of WGS libraries was isolated from a female wallaby lung (from AGRF). A male tammar wallaby BAC library was made at the Arizona Genomics Institute. There has been a great deal of interaction and visits between the BCM-HGSC and AGRF teams from the outset, including exchange of protocols and reagents. An initial low-coverage assembly is available.

The Tammar wallaby genome project was funded by the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Australian Genome Research Facility Ltd. (AGRF), The Victorian State Government, and the Brockhoff Foundation.

Genomic Resources

Access to the data