Exploiting genomic strategies to understand tree development

森林是加拿大最重要的自然资源，占世界森林的10%，出口价值430亿加元，为近40万加拿大人提供就业机会。传统上，森林为建筑材料、纸浆和纸张提供木材和纤维产品，但随着人们对可再生能源的兴趣日益浓厚，树木有望为我们提供未来的燃料，如生物乙醇和生物柴油。随着未来对我们森林的需求不断增长，清楚地了解树木如何生长和发育将变得越来越重要。最近完成了第一个树木DNA序列，这是在分子水平上了解树木生长和发育的机会。我的研究计划将利用白杨DNA序列，以及我自己实验室开发的独特白杨资源，以确定负责树木生长和发育各个方面的基因。结合对模式植物拟南芥和白杨的研究，我们将鉴定几个与控制木材质量或数量有关的基因的功能。 在这项研究计划的过程中，大约7名研究生将接受培训，3名博士和4名硕士，每年8-10名本科生将被培训为荣誉学生，暑期学生或志愿者。

Forests are Canada's most important natural resource, representing 10% of the worlds forests, worth $43 billion in exports and providing jobs for almost 400,000 Canadians. Traditionally forests have provided wood and fiber products for building materials and pulp and paper, but with the growing interest in renewable energy sources, trees hold the promise of providing our future fuels such as bioethanol and biodiesel. With this growing demand on our forests in the future, it will become increasingly important to have a clear understanding of how trees grow and develop. Recently the first tree DNA sequence was completed, and with this comes the opportunity to understand tree growth and development at the molecular level. My research program will utilize the poplar DNA sequence, together with unique poplar tree resources developed in my own labortory to identify the genes responsible for various aspects of tree growth and development. Combining research in the model plant Arabidopsis and poplar, we will identify the function of several genes that are resonsible for controlling the quality or quantity of wood. During the course of this research program approximately 7 graduate students will be trained, three PhD and 4 MSc, and each year 8-10 undergraduate students will be trained as honours students, summer students, or volunteers.