Award Abstract #0520956
Acquisition of a New Transmission Electron Microscope, CCD Camera and Ultramicrotome for a Core Electron Microscopy Facility

NSF Org:	DBI Division of Biological Infrastructure
Initial Amendment Date:	September 14, 2005
Latest Amendment Date:	September 14, 2005
Award Number:	0520956
Award Instrument:	Standard Grant
Program Manager:	Robyn E. Hannigan DBI Division of Biological Infrastructure BIO Directorate for Biological Sciences
Start Date:	September 1, 2005
Expires:	August 31, 2008 (Estimated)
Awarded Amount to Date:	$463421
Investigator(s):	Soumitra Ghoshroy ghoshroy@sc.edu (Principal Investigator) Michele Nishiguchi (Co-Principal Investigator) William Lott (Co-Principal Investigator)
Sponsor:	New Mexico State University 1620 STANDLEY DR ACADEMIC RESH A Las Cruces, NM 88003 575/646-1590
NSF Program(s):	MAJOR RESEARCH INSTRUMENTATION
Field Application(s):
Program Reference Code(s):	BIOT, 9184, 2886
Program Element Code(s):	1189

ABSTRACT

This award is for the purchase of a transmission electron microscope, a dedicated digital camera for image acquisition and a room temperature ultramicrotome for the multi-user Electron Microscopy Laboratory at New Mexico State University. These new set of instruments will significantly improve the research and student training on campus and will be used by a group of fifteen investigators from colleges of Arts and Sciences, Agriculture and Home Economics, and Engineering. This research group includes senior investigators with well established research projects as well as junior faculty members who will benefit enormously from the instruments for their career development. The following research projects will make use of the acquired instruments: (1) plant-virus interaction in Arabidopsis thaliana, (2) evolutionary ecology of animal bacterial mutualisms, (3) investigation of assembly of Hepatitis C nucleocapsid-like particles and morphology of hepatocytes cultured on a rotary tissue culture system, (4) effect of vancomycin and house cleaners on cell wall morphology of house-cleaner tolerant Staphylococcus aureus mutants, (5) study of mechanosensory hair cell differentiation during organogenesis. Other projects include structural study of symbiotic fungi in native desert plants, membrane lipid endocytosis by Giardia lamblia, fuel cell technology, mine tailing remediation, subcellular localization of viral replication processes and storage protein bodies in plants, interaction of pathogenic fungus Cercospora beticola with sugar beet and safflower, interaction of soil-borne pathogens with economically important crops in Southern New Mexico, immunolocalization of various Zein proteins in alfalfa, investigation of regulation of the actinomysin and microtubule cytoskeletons for proper coordination of mitosis and cytokinesis in animal cells, and influence of environmental, insect, and herbicide stresses on crop and weed productivity. The newly acquired instruments will be made available to all potential users from various other departments across campus and they will be invaluable for the lab's strong teaching mission and local community outreach activities.

PUBLICATIONS PRODUCED AS A RESULT OF THIS RESEARCH

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Beuhler, H, and D.C. Thompson.  "Occurrence of the gall midge Asphondylia prosopidis on mesquite, and its potential for use as a biological control agent to mitigate the spread of mesquite,"  Abstract Annual National Meeting of the Entomological Society of America,  2006, 

Jacobson, A.L., D.C. Thompson, L. Murray, and S.F. Hanson.  "Establishing guidelines to improve identification of the fire ants, Solenopsis xyloni and Solenopsis invicta,"  J. Econ. Entomol,  v.99,  2006,  p. 313.

Pingali, K.C., Deng, S., Rockstraw, D.  "Direct synthesis of Ru-Ni nanoparticles with core and shell structure,"  Chem. Eng. Comm,  v.194,  2007,  p. 780.


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