Grant: Research Tools and Instruments

We are requesting funds to acquire a confocal laser scanning microscope, which will be of immense benefit to a team of internationally reputed team leaders in their multidisciplinary research programs. All the applicants (6) and collaborators (5) on this proposal are conducting research in the areas of animal, plant, and food science. Some of the major areas of investigation by these researchers are to investigate: the biodiversity and biofunctions of bovine gut microflora; host regulatory gene and protein markers in complex traits in cattle and swine; composition of undigested residue in relation to gut microbiome in swine; metagenomic analysis of bacterial populations in intestinal tissues in piglets; the mechanisms of action of bioactive peptides in cells and animal tissues; plant insect and plant-fungal interactions for best management strategies; and characteristics of muscle and adipose tissue related to cancer-associated myosteatosis. For all of these discovery-based and applied research projects; direct visualization and imaging method using confocal laser scanning microscope is a fundamental requirement. Availability of this microscope will promote research and innovations with a major impact in the areas of agricultural production, food quality, animal and human health in beef, dairy and swine industries, knowledge-based disease management in plants, develop functional food ingredients and biomaterials for biomedical applications. This equipment will be housed in a multi-user core genomics facility in the Department of Agricultural, Food and Nutritional Science, which has provided training to over 750 highly qualified personnel in the last 10 years on genomics and other related instrumentation. Currently, graduate, undergraduate, summer students, postdoctoral fellows, research associates and technologists use this facility, receive training and integrate these high-throughput genomics and molecular technologies in their research projects. The work to be facilitated by the confocal microscope will play an important role in the advancement of the currently funded research projects of the applicants and collaborators on this proposal and will promote new partnerships. Furthermore, the availability of the confocal microscope will be critical for advancement of our knowledge for agricultural discovery and innovation and prepare highly qualified personnel for industry and academia.