Berry College MRI: Aquisition of a Flex Real-Time PCR System for Undergraduate Research and Teaching

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An award is made to Berry College to increase the research productivity of faculty and enhance undergraduate research and teaching through the acquisition of an Applied Biosystems QuantStudio 7 Flex Real-Time PCR system. Over the three-year grant period, the QuantStudio 7 will enable faculty to engage an estimated 77 undergraduate research assistants and 312 undergraduates in coursework, teaching them modern molecular techniques and comprehensively preparing them for graduate school and careers in science. This instrument will create opportunities for undertaking new laboratory exercises and engaging in research within the classroom in a diverse set of courses, including Molecular Biology, Developmental Biology, Genetics of Domesticated Animals, and Chromatin, Epigenetics, and Gene Expression. The QuantStudio 7 will also facilitate partnerships between Berry and other institutions, including Dalton State College (an HSI) and Colorado State University. In partnership with Armuchee High School (serving economically diverse students) and the Georgia Governor's Honors Program (a summer program held on the Berry campus that serves Georgia's top science students from diverse backgrounds), Berry will provide an estimated 348 high school students with early exposure to molecular research instrumentation and methods, which will help build their confidence in their ability to pursue STEM majors and careers. Given the impact of Berry's activities using the QuantStudio 7, as well as the research and training planned by shared users in the Northwest Georgia region, this instrument will play a role in producing the qualified STEM workers the state needs to meet projected STEM employment growth. It will also further Berry's strategic goal to graduate students who are "life ready" prepared to be agents of improvement through the integration of rigorous academic learning with meaningful applied learning experiences and a heart for service. The QuantStudio 7 will foster and facilitate the OneHealth approach to research, i.e., transdisciplinary collaborations between physicians, veterinarians, epidemiologists, ecologists, climatologists, medical researchers, and numerous other specialties, as dictated by the specific problem being studied. In the immediate future, the QuantStudio 7 will bring together the project's four PIs a diverse group that includes three early-career investigators and other faculty who collectively are studying coral reef ecosystem health, wildlife and domesticated animal health, and parasites related to human health. With access to a modern real-time PCR system, the PIs' research will advance understanding of a broad spectrum of molecular mechanisms. Specifically, the PIs will use the instrument to study potential immune genes and endocrine disruption in cnidarians to better understand how these organisms respond to a changing environment; develop an ideal method for cryopreserving eggs, sperm, and embryos of goat and deer species for agricultural purposes and wildlife conservation; and determine how genetic variants affect early pregnancy and thus facilitate genetic selection programs to improve cow fertility. The PIs will disseminate their research findings through submission of papers to peer-reviewed journals and presentations at national and international meetings. Overall, the QuantStudio 7's robust capabilities will advance future investigations in interconnections between human, animal, and environmental health.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.