The turkey is more important than you think. There's more to the average turkey than being dinner chow. It's contributed to medical knowledge.

Last year researchers at Virginia Tech's Avian Immunobiology Lab mapped nearly 90 percent of the turkey genome. It wasn't the first bird species to have its genome sequenced- the first and second was the chicken and zebra finch- but it was the first time that scientists used next generation sequencing technologies, the Illumina GAII and Roche 454 pyrosequencing. The researchers were able to finish sequencing the turkey's genome in a year and at a fraction of the cost of sequencing the chicken's genome which took several years and millions of dollars.

Sequencing the turkey genome could lead to a more useful breeding process for turkeys in the future. Finding which genes are connected to fertility could increase production by increasing the amount of time sperm can be stored for later use. Majority of turkey farmers rely on artificial insemination for turkeys to reproduce. Further study of turkey DNA may find solutions to reproductive problems and make artificial insemination easier.

Researchers are also hoping to bring back a genome that is commonly found in wild turkeys. Domestic turkeys have lost this genome from their wild turkey relatives. This genome makes wild turkeys more resistant to a type of toxic fungus found in corn and soybeans. The toxin is deadly or it can lower a turkey's resistance to other infections.

The modern broad breasted turkey is descended from turkeys domesticated in Mexico. The Spanish took the birds back to Europe where they quickly spread.

"Very quickly the domesticated turkey became, as far as I could tell, the real first New World food to be adopted in Europe," Andrew F. Smith, a food historian and the author of "The Turkey: An American Story" told MSNBC News.

"When the Pilgrims and when the Jamestown colonists arrived, they had already eaten turkey," Smith said.