The consensus comparative map of seven grass species shows how the genomes can be aligned in terms of "rice linkage blocks" (Gale & Devos, 1998). A radial line starting at rice, the smallest genome and innermost circle, passes through regions of similar gene content in the other species.

Therefore a gene in one grass species has a predicted location in a number of other grass species. This observation has driven much sharing among researchers working on the various grass species (Phillips & Freeling, 1998).