The first Conifer Genome Sequencing Summit took place in Sweden from June 14 to 18, 2013. The event, which was held in Björkliden, Lapland located above the Arctic Circle, brought together some sixty researchers from almost a dozen countries. This Summit followed the sequencing of the white spruce and Norwegian spruce genomes, the results of which were recently published in Nature, among others.
Researchers Nathalie Pavy, Jukka-Pekka Verta, Juliana Sena, John MacKay and Jean Bousquet from the SMarTForests team at Université Laval presented the most recent findings on the structure of the white spruce genome, on its genetic diversity and on applications in variety breeding using genomic profiles.
This research is supported by Genome Canada and Génome Québec, among other partners. As shown in the photo taken at night, the Summit participants had the chance to experience the midnight sun during the summer solstice, a natural phenomenon that occurs in locations above the Arctic Circle.