The theme ‘Reproduction and Recombination’ is of strategic and great importance for breeding programs. This theme is closely connected to the heart of breeding: the use of genetic variation that results from the process of recombination. The breeding of new crops and ornamentals is driven by an efficient use of this process. Our goal is to understand both the molecular and genetic aspects of this process in order to be able to influence and improve it, for example by increasing or decreasing the recombination frequency or by directing recombination to specific positions. With these tools we will be able to optimally utilize desirable genes in the genome and to avoid undesirable ones.
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