This award will support collaborative research between Professor Elizabeth D. Earle, Cornell University, and Professor C.J. Leaver, University of Edinburgh, Scotland, in the field of plant molecular biology. The genomes--arrangement of genes--in cereal mitochondria, such as maize, will be studied by means of tissue culture and the propagation of the observable characteristic of male sterility in these plants. Professor Earle's earlier work has led to the development of culture methods for "tailored" genomes in various vegetables. By means of tissue culturing, fusions of genes into new genomes, which may be less or more resistant to certain diseases or environmental threats, is possible. The intent of the work here is to extend these techniques to study agriculturally important problems in other crops. New materials for this study will be cultured in Professor Earle's laboratory, providing a rich source of mitochondrial diversity for subsequent analysis, to be performed in the laboratory of her U.K. collaborator. The results of this complementary research may lead to the development of new and useful variants of important crops.
