Genomic resources and transcriptome mining in Agave tequilana

Different species of Agave are grown commercially in Mexico for the production of alcoholic beverages and fibers. These plants are well adapted to dry, arid conditions and can be cultivated on land which is unsuitable for staple crops such as corn or beans. A substantial amount of waste material in the form of discarded leaves or stem tissue is produced from commercial applications and an attractive alternative proposition is to employ this waste for bioenergy production. To date little basic research at the molecular-genetic level in agave has been carried out and more detailed and directed work in this area is necessary in order to fully develop agave species as bioenergy crops. The current genomic resources available for agave and the potential for transcriptome mining in relation to bioenergy applications are discussed.