Automated gas chromatography system

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In this application, we request funds to purchase an automated gas chromatography system, capable of carrying out fast and reproducible quantitative analyses of lipids. Our research programs focus on plant lipid metabolism and its regulation, with the goals of manipulating cuticular wax and seed oil compositions in commercial crops. Our studies utilize mutants and large numbers of transgenic plants with altered lipid profiles. Since lipid compositional changes can only be accurately determined by gas chromatography, the requested instrument is essential to us for evaluations of such mutants and genetically engineered plants. Until now we have been using an old instrument purchased by Dr. Beverley Green in the Department of Botany in 1985 for routine analysis. However, this gas chromatograph and the autosampler required for high throughput sample analyses have now broken down and are not possible to repair because the manufacturer no longer supports this older model. In the past six months, we have been relying heavily on a high-end analytical GC-MS instrument located in the Jetter lab in our department. Due to the heavy use of this instrument by the lab residents, and its analytical focus on identification of unknown compounds, rather than routine detection of varying amounts of known compounds, this gas chromatograph is not appropriate for our needs. Our trainees, as well as our research programs, face serious delays in research progress and productivity. The requested instrument will alleviate these problems, and provide an invaluable resource required not only for our labs, but also other members of our Department.