As part of the US Department of Energy Microbial Genome Program, the Joint Genome Institute (JGI) will be sequencing approximately 8X shotgun coverage of Aspergillus niger ATCC strain #1015. The Pacific Northwest National Laboratory will ship genomic DNA (from isolated nuclei) to the JGI for library preparation, sequencing and assembly by JGI's assembler, JAZZ. Once assembled, data will be available to the research community from JGI's website. This process is expected to take 3-6 months from December 2004. Automated gene modeling will be performed at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. There is a potential for EST sequencing to enhance the automated gene calling. The 8X shotgun sequence will come from three genomic DNA libraries: 40kb (0.5X), 8kb (4X) and 3kb (4X).
Once the genome sequencing process is established a detailed strategy for annotation and publication will be developed. It is intended that this will be an open, community-wide process involving all those interested in contributing.