ROCKVILLE, Md. -- Members of the American Society of Plant Biologists (ASPB) are helping advance our understanding of plants and their genes, efforts that in addition to furthering our fundamental knowledge of plant biology, will improve our ability to enhance agricultural productivity, grow nutritious foods, and diminish the effects of devastating plant parasites. ASPB members are leading the majority of the 28 new research awards recently announced by the National Science Foundation (NSF) under its Plant Genome Research Program (PGRP). In fact, two former ASPB presidents are playing leadership roles in the newly funded projects.
The projects supported under the PGRP awards use the techniques of modern genomics—sequencing and analyzing genetic material—to advance our understanding of how plant genes function and govern plants' interactions with the environment in economically important crop species including barley, corn, cotton, rice, soybean, tomato, and wheat. Each project will also incorporate outreach and educational activities, engaging K, community college, and undergraduate students and teachers—as well as the public—in plant-related activities. (A complete list of funded projects and their principal investigators is attached.)
The PGRP, which was established in 1998 as part of the National Plant Genome Initiative, is coordinated by an Interagency Working Group on Plant Genomes of the National Science and Technology Council. A total of $101.9 million was awarded under this new announcement.
NSF has also recently released the 2011 PGRP solicitation with a target date for proposals of January 28, 2011. Additional information about the program is available at the http://www.nsf.gov/funding/pgm_summ.jsp?pims_id=5338&org=BIO .
ASPB is a professional scientific society, headquartered in Rockville, Maryland, devoted to the advancement of the plant sciences worldwide. With a membership of nearly 5,000 plant scientists from throughout the United States and more than 50 other nations, the Society publishes two of the most widely cited plant science journals: The Plant Cell and Plant Physiology . For more information about ASPB, please visit http://www.aspb.org/ . Also follow ASPB on Twitter @ASPB .
National Science Foundation Plant Genome Research Program 2010 Awards
Principal investigator (PI) and co-PIs are listed
(* indicates member of American Society of Plant Biologists)