The three instruments requested here will significantly enhance the biomedical research climate for students and faculty at the University of Guam. This will immediately serve the RISE goals of student and faculty development, and will add to integration of teaching and research that will motivate more students to complete the baccalaureate degree and go on to graduate school, and more teaching faculty to publish and apply for research grants. The three instruments requested include a low-field nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometer, a VersaDoc 1000 Imager, and a differential interference contrast (DIC)/fluorescence microscope to support training of students in modern microscopy. Each of these instruments will serve all our biology and chemistry majors (-60-70 students) through 9 chemistry and 8 biology courses. By using the instruments in different courses, students will develop the ability to apply the techniques to novel situations in their research. The equipment will also be used in faculty research projects, often with students, which will increase output of presentations and publications and contribute preliminary data toward grant applications. The Data from the Imager and microscope will be shared through the new RISE Science LAN. Provision has been made for maintenance of the equipment by the University under the responsibility of the named faculty. NMR is one of the most important and powerful spectroscopic techniques in organic and biochemistry, but is not currently available on Guam. The NMR most suited to our teaching needs, small institution size, and remote location is a refurbished 60 MHz Fourier Transform spectrometer equipped with a permanent magnet and 1H and _C Probes. This system is much more resilient than a superconducting 300 MHz instrument, requires no cryogenics, and can and maintained by the University with available resources. The chemist in charge attended an NSF-sponsored workshop on NMR last year The VersaDoc Imager and associated statistical analyses will allow us to advance the genetics and molecular labs into quantitative analysis. Students will learn to design experiments with precision to accurately estimate population genetic parameters and will be able to implement the types of automated, quantitative measurements they will need in biomedical research. With the DIC/FL microscope students will learn to select and set up appropriate optics for biodiversity and cytology studies. The superior views of living biological specimens from DIC optics in the microscope will deepen students' understanding of biological systems and further their contribution to research into the marine biota of Guam.
