US-Pakistan Cooperative Research: Ecophysiology of Coastal Halophytes of Pakistan

描述：该奖项是对雅典俄亥俄大学的欧文·昂加博士和巴基斯坦卡拉奇大学植物系M·阿杰马尔·汗博士的合作项目的支持。这两个机构将进行研究，以研究盐生植物、多肉植物(Suaeda Ruticosa)、茎多肉植物(Haloxylurvum)和草(Halopyrum Armronatus)在不同生活史不同阶段的田间和实验室条件下对不同水平盐分和干旱的比较反应。从植物的萌发、建立、生长、繁殖、植物与土壤的关系、组织和土壤离子含量的变化、渗透关系、耐盐耐旱机制等方面进行研究，以确定植物的耐盐性极限及其在田间条件下的生态反应。盐度和干旱对种子萌发和生长的不同影响将贯穿整个生长季。将研究耐盐性的生理标记，以便培育获得这种特性的植物。范围：该项目将涉及两名科学家，他们过去曾共同努力解决世界上许多较贫穷国家的一个更紧迫的生态问题，即日益减少的资源和日益减少的淡水供应以及日益增加的土壤盐分。他们计划通过对巴基斯坦盐生植物的研究，增加我们对耐盐植物的生态和生理方面的知识。巴基斯坦特别适合进行这项研究，因为它有一条毗邻大型红树林的大海岸线，在几个地区拥有许多品种的耐盐植物。海岸线的其余部分毗邻广袤的沙漠。这两位科学家拥有互补的技能和设施，他们的研究将通过这次合作得到加强。这一建议符合支持美国与外国在互利领域进行合作的国际目标。该项目是与综合生物学和神经科学部共同资助的。

Description: This award is for support of a cooperative project by Dr. Irwin Ungar of Ohio University in Athens, and Dr. M. Ajmal Khan, Department of Botany at the University of Karachi in Pakistan. The two will conduct research to study the comparative response of halophytes, the leaf succulent (Suaeda fruticosa), stem succulent (Haloxylon recurvum) and the grass (Halopyrum mucronatum) to various levels of salinity and drought under field and laboratory conditions at different stages of their life cycle. Investigations will be carried out on the germination, establishment, growth, reproduction, plant and soil relationship, variation in the ion content of tissue and soil, osmotic relations, and mechanism of salt and drought tolerance to determine the tolerance limit of species and their ecological responses under field conditions. The differential effect of salinity and drought on germination and growth will be followed throughout the growth season. Physiological markers of salt tolerance will be investigated so that plants can be bred to acquire such characteristics. Scope: This project will involve two scientists who had worked together in the past in an effort to address one of the more pressing ecological problems in many of the world's poorer countries, namely the ever-decreasing resources and the dwindling fresh water supplies as well as the increasing salinity of soils. They plan to increase our knowledge of the ecology and physiology of salt-tolerant plants through the study of halophytes of Pakistan. Pakistan is particularly suitable for this research because it has a large coastal line adjacent to large mangroves, with many varieties of salt tolerant plants, in several areas. The rest of the coastline is adjacent to vast deserts. The two scientists possess complementary skills and facilities, and their research would be enhanced through this collaboration. This proposal meets the INT objective of supporting US-foreign collaboration in areas of mutual benefit. This project is jointly funded with the Division of Integrative Biology and Neuroscience.