Project:

matK and rbcl identification of Brassica oleracea subspecies

Students:

Jaylynn Castro, Sharissa Marsh, Tristyn Pagan, Cassidy Marcus

School:

St. Raymond Academy for Girls, The Bronx

Mentors:

Marianne Williams

Abstract:

Greens and vegetables are a staple of any healthy balanced diet. You can get these nutrients through white-headed cabbage(Brassica oleracea var. capitata f. alba), brussel sprouts (Brassica oleracea var. gemmifera), broccoli (Brassica oleracea var. italica), cauliflower (Brassica oleracea var. botrytis), kale (Brassica oleracea var. acephala), head cabbage (Brassica oleracea var. britannica), and kohlrabi (Brassica oleracea var. gongylodes). As different as these vegetables might be, they all are connected as one species. Brassica oleracea is the species that connects all these vegetables. Each one is a subspecies of Brassica oleracea. This raises the question are these variants different on a genetic level? Can DNA barcoding identify each variety? To conduct this research, we plan on comparing the matK genes and the rbcl genes of the variants side by side to determine if the evolution of Brassica oleraca changed the genes to differentiate the subspecies or if their genes are so conser

Poster:

Team samples: