Grass spikelet genetics and duplicate gene comparisons

The grass spikelet contains floral organs such as stamens and carpels, as well as additional organs, glumes, lemma, palea, and lodicules that are unique to the angiosperms. Recent work is beginning to shed light onto the genes that regulate the development of spikelet organs. Many of these genes are members of multigene families. These multigene families have formed through gene duplications, some of which are specific to the grass family. I review the recent progress made in understanding the genetics of grass spikelet development. As many of these genes begin to be isolated, they will likely be compared with homologous genes from other angiosperms. Given that some of these genes will be duplicate genes, I provide a set of examples showing how orthologues and paralogues should be compared.