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Notes

check out Cybertracker.org 

 NSF predoc fellowship app due Nov. 6

DOE fellowship app due Nov. 30

Contact

Office:  Erman 305  

E-mail:  tviinanen@uchicago.edu

Research Interests

My research questions are motivated by interests in sustainability and conservation, as well as an inherent curiosity of the world around me.  I have a particular interest in sustainable agriculture, which is why I have chosen the species Thinopyrum intermedium (intermediate wheatgrass, from here on IWG) as the subject of my research.  This species is in a breeding/domestication program at The Land Institute near Salina, Kansas and has the potential to transform global agriculture as a perennial wheat.    

A major goal of this collaboration with The Land Institute (TLI) is to develop markers for marker-assisted selection.  I am currently working to optimize a high-throughput protocol for extracting genomic DNA from IWG.  Any molecular protocols/data can be found here.  I hope to detect SNPs and genotype at the same time using the Solexa machine/Illumina sequencing technology. Our lab is working with Ed Buckler's lab to develop an economical way of genotyping many samples in a single Solexa lane.  I went on a tissue collecting trip to TLI September 24-26, 2009 and now have almost 1000 samples (x2) to genotype.  So hopefully I will have my first sequence data this winter.  

My specific research interests are not yet so specific, but have a direction.  See my EPA STAR fellowship proposal for details.  I took soil cores from 30 IWG plants on September 1, 2009.   Researchers at TLI measure above-ground phenotypic traits, such as:  yield/stem, seed weight, height, and number of tillers.  I chose these 30 plants so that they span this above-ground variation with the intention of looking at the below-ground (b-g) variation and determining what kind of below-ground/above-ground correlations exist.  I will be analyzing the roots with the program WinRHIZO, which will give me information on traits such as branching patterns, root length, area, and volume.  The soil will be sent for phospholipid fatty acid analysis to determine arbuscular myccorhizae fungi and microbial biomasses.  I will be analyzing these soil cores before Thanksgiving and will have preliminary data soon.  My research on the below-ground patterns and processes could have implications for selecting certain b-g traits important for water and nutrient-use efficiency, as well as longevity.  Ultimately, this information will be combined with genomic data to increase our understanding of the genetic basis for these traits.

Projects

Argonne National Laboratory: I am collaborating with Mike Miller to set up field plots and greenhouse experiments at ANL to further investigate below-ground phenomena. 

The Land Institute:  I am collaborating with Lee DeHaan  to develop markers for marker-assisted selection for Intermediate wheatgrass.  

Fermi National Laboratory:  I am collaborating with Geoff Morris and others on a bioenergy experiment involving cultivars of switchgrass and other prairie mixes.