news flash

104% on Plant Molecular Genetics final! Whoop! (If I do say so myself.)

Poo on finals

I met with my committee yesterday and told them about my crazy project. I myself do not think it could possibly work but I guess it's worth a try.

They asked me a few questions and I cried a little and then they stopped asking questions, which was embarrassing and also nice.

I took one final yesterday at 7 am - Biochemistry, done.

I took one final yesterday at 9 am - Plant Molecular Genetics, done.

I only have four more classes to take for my PhD, three next semester and one in the fall, which is good because after next fall I have no more funding.

After I do one more take-home final the semester is done. And I will be home in less than a week!!!!

But seriously, poo on finals.

Hers a song for you and for me....

Foreigners.

Eric says that I speak paywee as my native language.

I 1z 7#3 P0|<3m0N M4573r

I Is the pokemon Master...

And finally...

I sent this website to Mark but he didn't seem impressed even though he's been asking me to make him sideways corduroy forever.

http://www.cordarounds.com/

So there you have it.

towel technology advances.

Check it:

There must be someone we know who needs this. It's not me though.

puzzlers

Eric and I have moved up to doing all the puzzles in the Collegian every day. Even the word find. Also Eric is a crossword champ. He owns his puzz on a daily basis.

ownt.

We have to present our grant proposals. Paul presented his today. He proposed knocking out an enzyme pathway. I pointed out that the same enzyme was in two different pathways, and the second pathway hadn't been circled or noticed. I thought maybe Paul had some clever explanation for why it didn't matter. He just hadn't even seen it.

We were supposed to be working on these projects all semester.

it's been a long day.

Grant proposals are done! Never wanna do that again! Yay 7-11 and apple juice slurpees!

Investigator: Eric L. Patterson

Performing Institution: The National Center for Germplasm Resources and Preservation

A Structural and Genetic Study of Arecaceae Embryos to Define Orthodoxy and Recalcitrance in Cryopreservation

Abstract

Cryogenic germplasm storage is quickly becoming one of the greatest resources for the preservation of agricultural and wild species. While many orthodox plants such as corn or wheat are easily stored, other important germplasms remain recalcitrant to storage because of seed water content, protein and lipid structure. Many species in both categories of storage behavior can be found in the Arecaceae (Palms). The Arecaceae are of large agricultural importance and offer seeds with diverse habits and life histories. Understanding the parameters and molecular basis of recalcitrance in palm seeds will help us optimize preservation conditions such as timing, temperature, and duration.

To identify and classify seeds that are recalcitrant, we have to define recalcitrance. To do this we will take embryos from a variety of palm seeds at a variety of developmental stages and analyze dry matter content via light and electron microscopy. We will be able to break up the palm seeds into groups that are orthodox, intermediate, and recalcitrant by their biochemical and visual traits. After classification, we will focus on the orthodox group and look for a molecular basis for their cryo-tolerance. We will develop microarrays with candidate genes identified in the oil-palm genome as well as more distantly related plants like rice and sugarcane. Then embryos can be screened at different developmental stages to find differential expression of the candidate genes. With this data we can begin to time dehydration and freezing of cryo-tolerant species of palm to optimize preservation and post-freezing germination.

A Test of the Complexity Hypothesis for the Continued Existence of the Chloroplast Genome

Investigator: Margaret B. Fleming

Institution: Colorado State University, Department of Biology

Abstract: The persistence of the chloroplast genome has long been an unexplained phenomenon, given that motive and means exist for chloroplast genes to relocate to the nucleus. Multiple hypotheses have been presented to explain this phenomenon, including the hydrophobic hypothesis, the Colocation of Redox Regulation hypothesis, and the complexity hypothesis. Briefly, the complexity hypothesis states that the evolution of photosynthesis prior to the endosymbiotic event permitted highly complex regulatory systems to develop. These systems, once transferred into the host cell, are unable to migrate to the nucleus because so many elements would be required to transfer at the same time. Such a mass migration would be prohibited by the laws of chance. I propose an experimental test of the complexity hypothesis by identification of a complete chloroplast gene regulatory network containing multiple elements (but a limited number of elements for the purposes of experimentation), followed by transfer of the DNA for the entire system to the nucleus. If the hypothesis is correct and the transfer is successful, there should be no deleterious phenotype related to this transfer, and possibly even an advantageous one will appear. This experiment will have relevance to genetic engineers as well as geneticists, since containment of genetic engineering constructs has long been proposed to prevent genetic drift, yet high rates of chloroplast DNA transfer to the nucleus occur. If complexity is a supportable hypothesis, a more complex insertion cassette in the chloroplast might be sufficient to contain the genetic modification.