Purpose Statement
The Plant Molecular Biology Center (PMBC) at Northern Illinois University was established in 1985 by the Illinois Board of Regents as an autonomous Center of Excellence within the Departments of Biological Sciences and Chemistry & Biochemistry. Located in Montgomery Hall on the NIU campus, the center provides a locus for the promotion, coordination and facilitation of research and instruction activities relevant to plant molecular biology and plant biotechnology. The center is also concerned with the transfer and application of this technology to public and private enterprises. While partially supported by the state of Illinois, the PMBC receives additional funding through research grants and contributions.
Research Activities
Research activities at the PMBC focus on molecular aspects of gene systems relevant to plant biotechnology. This research involves important crops such as barley, corn, rice, peas and soybeans, as well as model plants such as tobacco, Arabidopsis thaliana, and Petunia hybrida. Still other species are studied because they are phylogenetically significant, of concern for conservation, or serve as useful models of physiology or host-parasite interactions. The PMBC supports a Core DNA Laboratory that provides services to NIU researchers including DNA sequencing, oligonucleotide synthesis, genotyping, and Quantitative Real-Time PCR. These services are available to other individuals and entities on a contractual basis.
Instructional activities
An important mission of the PMBC is to train undergraduate and graduate students, as well as postdoctoral fellows and research specialists, in technical and theoretical methodologies relevant to plant molecular biology, biotechnology and genetic engineering. The PMBC faculty teach regular university courses and provide individual instruction to students carrying out experimental research in their laboratories.
Dissemination and development activities The PMBC is dedicated to disseminating the research results of its faculty to the professional community and to the public. This is done via publications in scientific journals, presentations at national and international conferences, seminars for both professional audiences and the general public, and articles in the popular press. More applied results are being patented and licensed through the Technology Commercialization Office at Northern Illinois University.
Core
DNA Analysis Lab The
PMBC coordinates and supports a core lab that assists the
researchers with their molecular experiments and provides
general analytical services including DNA sequencing, oligonucleotide
primer synthesis, real-time PCR, and genotyping. For more
information click here: The
Core Lab
