Associate Professor of Biology Elizabeth City State University Elizabeth City, North Carolina
Body of Abstract: Our undergraduate research lab is interested in developing plant tissue culture and transformation protocols that are amenable to K-16 class projects. Wisconsin Fast Plants (WFP: rapid-cycling Brassica rapa) is widely used for educational purposes, but it is difficult to tissue culture and transform. Kalanchoe is a good model system as it asexually produces plantlets (clones) from the edges of the leaves. We are interested in using tissue culture to develop salt-tolerant mutants. We are introducing the RUBY gene constructs into tobacco (easily transformable) as positive results (red spots/areas) can be clearly visualized. All these protocols intersect with course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) that have been integrated into two courses at Elizabeth City State University. CUREs and formal undergraduate research are recognized as leading contributors to graduate successes. We have optimized the concentration and duration of bleach for placing these plants into culture. For WFP, we are looking at the effects of cytokinins on shoot regeneration for 2 varieties: those with purple vs. green stigmas. For Kalanchoe, we are studying the effects of different concentrations of sodium chloride (salt) on in vitro root and new plantlets formation. For tobacco cultivars, we are investigating the transformation efficiencies with the RUBY gene constructs using different Agrobacterium strains and antibiotics. Results and future directions of these experiments will be presented.
Support for these activities was provided by a National Science Foundation grant from the HBCU Undergraduate Program.