This proposal seeks to acquire instrumentation needed to facilitate genomics research on the Purdue University campus. Purdue University has undertaken several important initiatives over the past 7 years that have provided substantial strength to genetics research. These include the construction and renovation of significant laboratory space, establishment of an interdisciplinary graduate training program in genetics, and the hiring of several genetics faculty with expertise spanning a broad and exciting range of topics. This growing momentum has now appropriately positioned Purdue University for the establishment of the Purdue Genomics Laboratory (PGL). Such a laboratory, once equipped for high throughput genomics data generation and analysis, will serve three important objectives: To support genomics research efforts of 8 primary users, to serve as a student training facility in support of a NSF-sponsored graduate training effort in plant genetics, and to facilitate collaborative linkages for the application of DNA-based methodologies to plant improvement. The instrumentation needed to meet these objectives includes an electronic autoradiography system, an automated DNA sequencing system with molecular biology labstation, a gel documentation system, CHEF mapping systems, thermocyclers, -80C freezer equipment, and plant growth chamber facilities. This equipment, once in place, would allow the initiation of several large-scale genomics research projects in important plant and fimgal genomes that, to date, have not been well-characterized. At present, the lack of these facilities on the Purdue campus are all that stand in the way of these valuable research endeavors.
