Abstract
The transition from the vegetative stage to the reproductive stage is a crucial process for all 聽flowering plants. The optimal timing for the development of flowering tissue not only increases 聽fertility and reproductive success, but also improves pollination, seed formation, and seed 聽dispersal. This timing of this transition is initiated by a network of a few hundred regulatory 聽genes which respond to changes in the plant鈥檚 environment, as well as other factors. The 聽collection of these genes is referred to as the Flowering Time Regulatory Pathway. The genomic 聽nature of this pathway has been studied for several decades in model species of Arabidopsis and 聽Brassica, as well as important crop species like wheat, barley, and sunflowers. The identification 聽of these genes in other novel crop species, like Cannabis, remains an important step in 聽describing the presence/absence and variation of the flowering time pathway. Using protein 聽alignment tools and publicly available genomic data, this research identified 618 candidate 聽flowering time genes present in Cannabis for future investigation into expression, variation, and 聽selection. The information gained on these candidate flowering time genes within Cannabis can 聽now be used to develop molecular primers to amplify these regions of the genome for 聽experimental purposes. The increasing economic importance of Cannabis propelled by recent 聽legalization movements in the US states and other countries makes the timing of this research 聽particularly relevant for growers, breeders, and geneticists aiming to understand the genomic 聽nature of flowering time in Cannabis.