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Plant
Sciences Research and Education Pipeline Update |
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May 2016 |
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A note from Karen Plaut |
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really growing with Purdue Plant Sciences. Construction is wrapping up
with the field facility at the Agronomy farm and design is well underway with
the controlled environment facility on campus. Please save the date for
the Indiana Corn and Soybean Innovation Center building dedication on August 29th. You can come and tour the facility and learn more about the capabilities,
including drones, the Phenomobile, plant analysis, and seed processing.
Also, we have completed the
interviews for the plant science faculty positions and have a great cohort of
new faculty that will be joining us in August.See the newsletter for additional details.
Feel free to share the Plant Sciences handout among colleagues and those
interested in engaging with Plant Sciences.
Feel free to email me if you have any questions at kplaut@purdue.edu
Karen Plaut, Ph.D. Senior Associate Dean for Research & Faculty Affairs Director, Ag Experiment Station |
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Expand plant biology |
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Faculty Recruitment Update |
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Since
January we have hosted 21 top tier candidates on campus. Thank you to
everyone for the effort you have put into this search. Each candidate’s
schedule was jam-packed with meetings with faculty from multiple
departments. We have done a great job of
showing off what Purdue has to offer!
Four
candidates have accepted offers and additional offers are outstanding. We welcome these new hires to the college of
Agriculture and into the departments of Entomology, Forestry and Natural
Resources, Botany and Plant Pathology, and Biochemistry. |
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Plant Science New Faculty: |
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Name: John
Couture, Ph.D. |
Current
affiliation: Assistant
Scientist, Department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology, University of Wisconsin
Madison |
Research
area: Integration
of hyperspectral data with plant and insect chemical ecology, from genes to
ecosystems, at multiple spatial scales |
Home
department: Entomology
/ Forestry and Natural Resources (75/25) |
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Name: Sharon
Kessler, Ph.D. |
Current
affiliation: Assistant
Professor, Department of Microbiology and Plant Biology, University of Oklahoma |
Research
area: The
process of pollen tube reception at the female gametophyte and the molecular
mechanisms that are involved in the female control of pollen tube reception |
Home
department: Botany
and Plant Pathology |
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Name: Sujith
Puthiyaveetil, Ph.D. |
Current
affiliation: Postdoctoral
Research Associate, Institute of Biological Chemistry, Washington State
University |
Research
area: Genetic
and molecular control of photosynthetic light utilization in plants |
Home
department: Biochemistry |
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Name: Yun
Zhou, Ph.D. |
Current
affiliation: Postdoctoral
Research Associate, Division of Biology, California Institute of Technology |
Research
area: Exploration
of cellular and molecular mechanisms controlling stem-cell function during
plant organ development using both experimental imaging and computational
modeling |
Home department: Botany |
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Molecular Agriculture Summer Institute |
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Pre-College
Student applications have arrived
for the 2016 Pre-College Molecular Agriculture Summer Institute! We are very happy to have several College of Agriculture faculty and staff
members playing a role in the week as research mentors, tour guides, and guest
speakers. These individuals represent research, teaching, and extension as well
as the Departments of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, Agronomy, Botany
and Plant Pathology, and Horticulture and Landscape Architecture.
Fourteen pre-college students will
be on Purdue’s campus June 12th-18th, 2016. These
academically talented and gifted youth (rising juniors and seniors) from
throughout Indiana will be working directly with a Purdue University faculty or
staff member on a laboratory experiment and present their experiment at the
conclusion of the program.The program will also include tours of various
facilities and field trials in and out of a classroom setting. Here’s what the 2015 cohort had to say about their experience!
If you have any questions please
e-mail Amy Jones at jones176@purdue.edu |
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Undergraduate
Nine undergraduate students will be
joining us for the Molecular Agriculture Summer Institute. We are looking
forward to another great summer of research supporting undergraduate student
development. The program will run May 26th – July 31st
and is designed to expose undergraduate students to the wide-ranging field of
plant sciences and STEM fields, develop their knowledge of the research process
and tools used by professional researchers, and increase their proficiencies in
technical communication.
If you have any questions please
e-mail Mary Helen Halsema at nesbitt@purdue.edu
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Automate
Phenotyping |
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Phase 1 imaging facility, Photo from BSA Life Structures
Study |
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The Controlled Environment Phenotyping Facility phase 1 design
is underway. This imaging facility will enhance plant sciences research
and education in the College of Agriculture. This facility will replace Range 2
of the Lilly Greenhouses and will contain highly controlled potted plants
growing on conveyor belts. This plant
imaging facility will allow users to schedule imaging of their plants and water
on a precise schedule. Plants grown in the new growth houses, up to full size
corn, can be imaged as well as plants from nearby greenhouses in this new
system. The construction is set to begin
fall 2016 and to be complete by the end of 2017. |
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Growth chambers, light rooms, and greenhouses
improvements are beginning this summer |
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The Whistler Growth Chamber renovation project is
beginning. It will start late fall 2016 and will be finished in fall of
2017. This 1.2 million dollar project will renovate and upgrade utilities
in Whistler B014, rooms in the subbasement and add 11 reach in growth
chambers. Whistler subbasement will have two additional light rooms
added and others light rooms improved as part of the summer renovation
project. In addition to becoming more sustainable as our light rooms move
to LED, our growth chambers will now rely on recycled chilled water vs.
domestic water for cooling. This renovation will increase Whistler’s
growth room space from 328 sq-ft to 802 sq-ft.
The Lilly greenhouse will have a pilot greenhouse
improvement project for 3 ranges this summer as a direct result of researcher
feedback we received as part of Bob Pruitt’s greenhouse evaluation. Range
3, 5, 6 are the older greenhouses that have the best concrete floors but the
worst environmental controls. The improvements will include replacing the
controllers, doing a deep cleaning, and replacing the lights. The
struggling Grow-tron controllers will be replaced with new Argus
controllers. Ron Steiner and his crew will rent a steam jenny (the same
equipment they use at Disney to make the pavement look new each day) to clean
all the concrete. The lights will be repurposed and new 600W high
pressure sodium lights, like in the current weed science greenhouses, will be
installed. Future plans may include replacing the stationary tables with
mobile tables. In addition, there will be some changes in space
allocation in both facilities to accommodate the maximum number of users. |
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Featured new phenotyping tool |
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The newest addition to the Phenotyping Core is a prototype
multispectral imaging system from Aris Vision Company. The “Aris Box” is a
system designed to be easy to use for small samples including loose seed,
Arabidopsis, corn ears, tissue culture and seedlings. It acquires images under
seven different colored pulses: blue, green, yellow, amber, red, far red, and
infrared, to distinguish unique features in plant tissues. The current model
has a filter for chlorophyll fluorescence, but additional filters are possible
for fluorescent proteins (GFP, RFP) and other features. Images can be aligned over multiple time
points to model growth and development rates. Researchers are encouraged to
discuss their needs and be early adopters. Please contact April Agee Carroll: aprilcarroll@purdue.edu. |
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Sensor customization underway on the
Phenomobile |
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The Purdue TERRA project has purchased various sensors and are
being fitted to a custom boom on the Phenomobile. Other updates are
underway to the Phenomobile including a modification to the windows to increase
the size of the cabin. This modification
will allow room for a new GPS automated guidance system monitor and on-board
data storage.The supplementary electrical power sources are being
mounted. |
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License to fly |
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We now have a Certificate of Authorization (COA) for the
Federal Aviation Administrations to fly our 7 unmanned aircrafts at the
Agronomy Center for Research and Education (ACRE). A certified UAS (Unmanned Aircraft System) flown
by a licensed pilot can be flown at the farm. Farm personnel will work directly with Mike Leasure, our unmanned aerial
systems facilitator, to optimize flight times and complete the paperwork needed
for each flight. In addition, flight
time MUST be scheduled with the farm superintendent, Jim Beaty, to avoid flying
when others are in the field. Safety and
compliance coupled with great data are our top priority. We are also discussing the possibilities of expanding our
flying capabilities at ACRE and beyond to the PAC sites. If you are interested in learning more about
this new technology and how it can be applied to your research, please contact Mike
Leasure at leasurem@purdue.edu. |
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Drive
Innovation |
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Indiana Corn and Soybean Innovation Center construction is nearly
complete. The center, formerly the Agronomy Center Automated Phenotyping
and Seed Processing facility, will support research related to plant
phenotyping and technology innovation towards Smarter Agriculture™. Substantial completion is set for May 13th
and final painting and hardware is being wrapped up. Over the next few
months and throughout the summer, we will be outfitting the building with
equipment that has been selected and recommended by the faculty, graduate
students, post docs and research staff. Jason Adams, the Automated
Phenotyping Facility Manager, will be working on training videos featuring you,
our own experts, and rolling those out as new equipment comes on line. You will be able to log your training and track your skills using Purdue
Passport. |
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Threshing
and Shelling room at the new Indiana Corn and Soybean Innovation Center |
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FACULTY PREVIEW! Indiana Corn and Soybean
Innovation Center |
Faculty,
graduate students, post docs and research staff engaged in plant sciences
research are invited to preview the new Indiana Corn and Soybean Innovation
Center on May 13th to learn more about its capabilities and discuss
equipment, including drones, the Phenomobile, plant analysis, and seed
processing. |
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Building
Dedication – Indiana Corn and Soybean Innovation Center |
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The building dedication and grand opening will be August 29th
for the university and the public to attend. Mitch Daniels along with the College of Ag will officially open the
Indiana Corn and Soybean Innovation Center (ICSC). There will be tours and demonstrations to showcase
the building’s capabilities.
For more details, email Jason Adams at adams314@purdue.edu |
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Foster entrepreneurship |
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Plant Sciences Initiative
Update - May 10th
As part of the larger Plant Sciences Forum to be held on May
10th, two EIRs (Entrepreneur in Residence) for Plant Sciences will provide a
brief overview of their role, scope and charter of the Foundry. One of
the primary aims of Purdue Moves is to “move” the tremendous innovations
stemming from Purdue Research into the marketplace, to make a significant
difference on human progress. The Foundry, and its resident EIRs, are a
resource to help faculty, students and alumni entrepreneurs commercialize their
innovations in plant sciences. Currently, there are about twenty (20)
active Foundry clients (faculty at the Foundry) with projects related in some
way to plant sciences.
The LaunchBox technology and opportunities through iCorps are available for
faculty to enhance their understanding of how to develop a business plan and
other skills to commercialize their products. In addition, a $2 million
Ag-celerator™ fund is available for individuals who want to make a pitch for up
to $100,000 in funding. |
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Additional EIR with Ag experience joining the
Foundry
As shared during the last Plant Sciences Newsletter, Daryl
Starr and Kay Kuenker serve as part-time Plant Sciences Entrepreneurs in
Residence (EIRs) at the Foundry. In mid-May, Dan Dawes also will join the
Foundry part time. Although not solely allocated to Plant Sciences
related projects, Dan comes to the Foundry with more than 30 years working for
DuPont’s Ag business and will serve as an excellent resource in sales and
project management. |
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Join our
Plant Sciences mailing list!
SEND your
name and current email address to erobin@purdue.edu.
We'd love your feedback! Please contact us with your comments.
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