Conducts discovery research in plant science for applications in agriculture and biotechnology.
The Carleton Facility for the Study of Plant Metabolism and Development uses molecular, genetic, cell biological and biochemical methods to understand plant genomes, metabolism and development. Research focuses on the regulation of agronomic traits, including abscission, flowering and inflorescence architecture, and the biosynthesis of protective surface barriers to support the development of higher-yielding crops with greater resistance to drought and pathogen attack. The facility also uses metabolic engineering of plants and microbes to produce high-value oils and waxes for food and industrial applications.
- Grow plants using tissue culture, controlled-environment growth chambers and greenhouses
- Perform plant pathogen and abiotic stress testing
- Perform plant genotyping
- Produce and characterize transgenic plants
- Perform bright-field, fluorescence and electron microscopy
- Perform plant histology, including thin sectioning, tissue staining and in situ hybridization
- Perform molecular biology services, including cloning, expression studies, isolation, detection and analysis of nucleic acids, sequencing, and gene expression analysis
- Perform biochemical analyses, including isolation, detection and analysis of proteins and characterization of protein-DNA and protein-protein interactions
- Perform plant genomics and transcriptomics analyses, including meta-analysis and construction of phylogenetic trees
- Agriculture, animal science and food
- Chemical industries
- Education
- Energy
- Forestry and forest-based industries
- Life sciences, pharmaceuticals and medical equipment
Specialized labs and equipment
| Specialized lab | Equipment | Function |
|---|---|---|
Nano Imaging Facility | Transmission electron microscope Scanning electron microscope Equipment for preparation of biological samples for electron microscopy | High-resolution imaging of surface and internal tissue structures at the subcellular level |
| Plant growth facilities | Controlled-environment chambers Greenhouses | For use in growing plants at specific conditions of light intensity, photoperiod, and temperature For use in generation, screening, and phenotypic analysis of plants For use in pathogen and stress testing of plants |
| Light microscope facility | Compound and fluorescence light microscopes | For imaging and phenotypic analysis of plants and tissues at the cellular level |
| Plant tissue culture facilities | Sterile hood for in vitro propagation of plants | For use in vegetative propagation of plants |
| Molecular biology and protein analysis facilities | Traditional and quantitative real-time thermocyclers Equipment for electrophoresis (protein and nucleic acids) Fluorescence and chemiluminescence imaging system Shaking incubators Electroporation equipment | For qualitative and quantitative analysis of plant genomes and transcriptomes For qualitative and quantitative analysis of nucleic acids and proteins Equipment for microbial growth and transformation |
| Plant histology facilities | Rotary microtome Shaking incubators Ovens | For preserving plant tissue For sectioning plant tissues For immunohistochemistry and/or in situ hybridization |
| Metabolic profiling equipment | Gas chromatographs | For qualitative and quantitative analysis of plant lipids |
Private and public sector research partners
- Sunrise Greenhouses Limited
- Tweed Incorporated
- Environment Canada
- Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
- National Research Council Canada
- Le Centre national de la recherche scientifique (CNRS) (France)
- Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA) (France)
- Seventh Framework Programme (FP7)
- Michigan State University (USA)
- Purdue University (USA)
- Algoma University
- Brock University
- University of British Columbia