A Real-Time Sequence Detection System for the Center for Marine Genomic Studies

Mount Desert Island Biological Laboratory, Bar Harbor ME

Investigators

Abstract

This award supports the purchase of instrumentation needed for genomic DNA analysis at the Center for Marine Genomic Studies of the Mount Desert Island Biological Laboratory. The two instruments to be purchased are a second-generation polymerase chain reaction (PCR) thermal cycler with four-channel fluorescence microplate reader that permits monitoring of reactions in process, and a robotic microplate processor that allows efficient set up of the 96-well plates used in the PCR device. The instruments will facilitate studies of the expression and function of genes in marine organisms with particular emphasis on improving the understanding of physiological processes in relation to environmental determinants such as salinity and temperature. Four NSF-funded research projects will make major use of the requested instruments. These focus on molecular studies of membrane transport proteins and associated enzymes in the gills of euryhaline teleost fish and of crustaceans.