During my few weeks at Kew, I worked entirely with the team of scientists at the Conservation Biotechnology Unit. My main focus was assisting in the Sainsbury Orchid Project, an effort to conserve and re-establish endangered British and European orchids using the technique of micropropagation. The objectives of the project are to 1) investigate techniques for in vitro mycorrhizal-assisted germination, asymbiotic propagation and planting methods for target species, selected from the UK Biodiversity Action Plan and from Prioritized lists prepared by English Nature, and 2) to provide plants for reestablishment and for other conservation purposes. (http://www.kew.org/science/directory/projects/SainsburyOrchCons.html)
Most of my efforts at Kew’s CBU centered on endangered orchids of the British Isles, the most notable being Cypripedium calceolus (the nearly extinct British ladyslipper orchid).
On a day to day basis, I would help prepare orchid tissue culture media, subculture orchids on to fresh media, collect and sterilize seeds for germination, and perform viability tests on older seeds from the orchid seed bank. A nice surprise during my last week with the CBU team was receiving a visit from National Geographic magazine. They were interested in writing a story on Kew’s efforts to rescue the dwindling native orchid population, and hopefully the article will be published this spring.
Many thanks to Sarasan, Grace, John, and the rest of the CBU team for your friendship and for a great learning experience.
0 comments:
Post a Comment