I need to put together a lab in plant development for next semester. It's
for an advanced section of a freshman course in organism biology. The basic
one week lab (for the non-advanced sections) is concerned with the effects
of IAA on shoot and root development, interactions of IAA and kinetin and
interactions of IAA and light. I'd like to carry the general theme of plant
hormones and development into a laboratory that lasts for about three weeks
and has a discovery oriented approach. I've had some ideas along the lines
of identifying second messenger pathways that mediate the effects of various
hormones, looking at differentiation in response to various hormones in a
plant cell culture system and identifying the mutation in plants with
mutations in different hormonal pathways (or at different points in a given
hormonal pathway) but, as a neurobiologist, my perspective on plant hormones
and development is rather naive and I have no personal experience with plant
biology laboratories.
Any information as to laboratory manuals, experiences with laboratories
along these lines, the existence of mutant plants or other suggestions would
be very much appreciated.
Liz Adler
Elizabeth M. Adler
Dept. of Biology
Williams College
Williamstown, MA
phone: (413)597 - 3544; 597 - 3550
FAX: (413)597 - 3495
