This award will support a series of short and long-term visits to Japan by students and faculty located at the Center for Microbial Ecology at Michigan State University. These visits will be under the auspices of a five-year agreement that the Center has with the Japan Research and Development Corporation (JRDC). The joint research project is headed by Professor James Tiedje, Director of the MSU Center for Microbial Ecology at the University of Michigan and Professor Keiji Yano at the Nagaoka University of Technology. In Japan the research will be preformed at Nagaoka University of Technology and at the Institute for Physical and Chemical Research (RIKEN) in the Tokyo area. The Center for Microbial Ecology is dedicated to understanding the underlying principles of microbial and function of microorganisms in natural and managed habitats. Research projects will include identifying microbes that have some ability to degrade pollutants, examining the genetic chemistry that gives them that ability and determining what evolutionary changes may be taking place to make them more effective. Research results should reveal new information about natural gene transfer among microbial species. Although the focus of the research is on basic knowledge, it is also expected to produce practical benefits in areas of environmental protection such as the microbial degradation of toxic wastes, groundwater quality, plant productivity and the regulation of agricultural and environmental biotechnologies. Americans are generally acknowledged leaders in microbial ecology whereas the Japanese's expertise lies in the area of molecular biology of genes involved in biodegradation. It is expected that this research, and the exchanges, will provide intellectually and culturally broadening experiences for every researcher taking part in the program.
