Plant and soil analytical sample preparation system

为了支持我正在进行的和未来的植物生态学研究，我正在申请资金购买一个集成系统，以便准确快速地处理生物样本（植物组织和土壤）。总体而言，我的研究计划侧重于获得植物-植物相互作用，植物-土壤相互作用，植物-化学生态学，群落组装，植物觅食行为以及干扰和变化（例如入侵，变暖，食草等）对生物多样性和生态系统功能的影响的机制理解。综合这些研究领域对于帮助加拿大减轻许多人为引起的自然系统变化的负面影响至关重要。此外，这些信息将更好地告知我们对自然系统和植物生物学的基本理解，对严重依赖自然资源的经济和我们未来保持加拿大生物多样性的能力都有影响。提出的系统有两个阶段(1)重量确定和(2)组织破坏。样品处理是在我的实验室进行研究的基础，每年至少要对大约10,000个样品进行两个阶段中的一个。这些资金将用于购买两台分析天平（包括一台高精度微天平），一台磨生物样品的磨珠机，以及控制软件和硬件。我实验室里现有的天平已经超过了它们的使用寿命，不能再校准了。在我的研究小组中，没有可靠的平衡导致了所有科学研究的核心错误。因此，这些余额迫切需要加以补充。我的研究小组目前还没有用于高通量组织破坏的磨粒机，我们借来了同事实验室里的时间。由于我的研究项目越来越依赖于分子生物学和化学的方法，我也增加了每年需要破坏组织以允许适当化学反应的样本数量。此时，我的课题组每年处理的样品数量太大，其他实验室的设备无法容纳，而不会对其他人的研究活动造成负面影响。因此，购买这台设备是至关重要的，这样我的实验室成员就可以不受限制地使用，促进研究发现。虽然所有这些设备将大量由我自己的实验室成员使用，但在需要时，我也会邀请同事和学生使用这些设备。我从同事们的慷慨大方中获益匪浅，我非常乐意以这样的慷慨回报他们。

I am requesting funds to purchase an integrated system allowing for the accurate and rapid processing of biological samples (plant tissue and soils) in support of my ongoing and future research in plant ecology. Broadly, my research program focuses on obtaining a mechanistic understandings of plant-plant interactions, plant-soil interactions, plant-chemical ecology, community assembly, plant foraging behaviour, and the impacts of disturbance and change (e.g. invasion, warming, herbivory, etc) on biodiversity and ecosystem function. Combined these research areas are critical to helping Canada mitigate the negative consequences of many human-induced changes to natural systems. Further, this information will better inform our basic understanding of natural systems and plant biology, with implications both for an economy heavily dependent upon natural resources and for our ability to maintain Canada’s biodiversity into the future. The proposed system has two phases (1) weight determination, and (2) tissue disruption. Sample processing is fundamental to the research conducted in my lab, and at least one of the two stages is performed on approximately 10,000 samples per year. These funds will be used to purchase two analytical balances (including one highly precise microbalance), a bead mill to grind biological samples, and control software and hardware. The existing balances in my lab have outlived their useful lives, and are no longer able to be calibrated. Failure to have reliable balances introduces error at the heart of all scientific inquires in my research group. Consequently, the balances are in urgent need of replacement. My research group does not currently have a bead mill for high-throughput tissue disruption, and we have instead borrowed time on those in the labs of colleagues. As my research program has increased its dependence on methods drawn from molecular biology and chemistry, I have also increased the number of samples generated each year requiring tissue disruption allow proper chemical reactions. At this point, the number of samples my research group processes annually is too great to be accommodated by equipment in other labs, without causing negative impacts on the research activities of others. Thus, it is critical this equipment be purchased so that my lab members can have unfettered access, facilitating research discovery. Though all of this equipment will be heavily used by my own lab members, I will also invite colleagues and students to use the equipment when need arises. I have benefited greatly from the generosity of colleagues, and am more than happy to offer such generosity in return.