Genetic and Epigenetic Characterization of Organellar DNA in Rice

The amyloplast, chloroplast and mitochondrial organelles play key roles in the development of rice, an agronomically important crop. Although the genetic aspects of these organelles are well studied in rice, their epigenetic characteristics have not been thoroughly characterized. Thus, this PhD project has explored both the genetics and epigenetics of amyloplast, chloroplast and mitochondrial DNA focusing on DNA methylation and small RNA epigenetics. Bioinformatics analyses were carried out using Next-Generation sequencing and publicly available sequencing data. The information gathered in this thesis provides insights into the biology of organellar DNA in rice.