A Candida albicans genome project: cosmid contigs, physical mapping, and gene isolation.

A new project to map the genome of the pathogenic fungus, Candida albicans, has been started. The entire genome was cloned as 5088 cosmids, stored in individual microtiter plate wells. DNA was prepared and fingerprinted using restriction digestion, fluorescent labeling, and analysis on an ABI sequencer. These data are being used to construct contigs of the genome. Simultaneously, a DNA pooling system has been set up, suitable for PCR-based isolation of cosmids containing any known gene. Ultimately, these approaches will lead to the creation of a physically based map of the C. albicans genome, providing the means to localize precisely all the genes, act as a substrate for genome sequencing projects, and provide probes for future studies of genome rearrangement and comparative genomics.