Plant Science
"To develop basic research in fundamental processes of plant growth and development and molecular plant pathology, to encourage young researchers in the field of plant science in the UK."
Summary of Plant Science programmes
List of grants paid during 2007 - 2008
Links to beneficiaries
Summary of Plant Science programmes
The Sainsbury Laboratory – Norwich, located at the John Innes Centre on the Norwich Research Park, has a scientific focus on plant molecular pathology and disease resistance.
The Sainsbury Laboratory – Cambridge, is the Foundation’s newest and largest ever programme commitment in the area of plant science. The Foundation has reached agreement with the University of Cambridge to build a new plant science laboratory located in the Botanic Gardens, Cambridge. The building will represent the latest thinking in effective laboratory design, and house over 120 scientists whose focus will be plant growth and development.
Trustees continue their support for the Plant Science Network and Science and Plants for Schools (SAPS). Looking ahead, Trustees have decided to change the emphasis of their SAPS programme towards support for post 16 plant science education, and to focus on securing and strengthening the plant science content of the biological curriculum.
The Foundation is assisted in its plant science research programmes by Dr. Roger Freedman and in its education programmes by a Scientific Advisory Panel comprising:
- Professor John Gray (retired November 08)
- Professor Jane Langdale
- Professor Liam Dolan
- Professor Ottoline Leyser (from November 08)
- Dr Celia Knight (from November 08)
List of grants paid during 2007 - 2008
| 2007-2008 | |
| Total | £10,750,814 |
| Total payments made in 2007 - 2008 (from new and previous grants) | |
| Gatsby Plant Science Ad Hoc | £84,352 |
| Towards the Ad Hoc Budget. | |
| Gatsby Plant Science Teacher Support Facility | £52,000 |
| Towards creating a teacher support facility
covering the cost of one full-time administrator. | |
| Gatsby Plants Summer School Project | £217,528 |
| Towards the development of the Gatsby Plants Summer School Project. | |
| Gatsby Sainsbury PhD Studentships | £190,257 |
| Towards supporting the Sainsbury Plant Science PhD Studentships. | |
| International Rice Research Institute | £82,351 |
| Towards the development of an African rice landrace
collection to aid national breeding programmes focused in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, including support to an IRRI training course on rice breeding. | |
| Sainsbury Laboratory, Norwich | £3,650,000 |
| To cover the laboratory’s core research activities. | |
| Science & Plants for Schools (SAPS) | £326,722 |
| Towards core funding for 2006/07. | |
| Two Blades Foundation | £246,682 |
| Towards project costs. | |
| University of Cambridge | £5,236,411 |
| Towards building and capital equipment costs, and
other general costs relating to the Sainsbury Laboratory Cambridge. Towards Professor David Baulcombe’s research into short silencing RNA. Towards the appointment of Professor Chris Gilligan. | |
| University of Oxford | £548,119 |
| Towards a lectureship, a post-doctoral researcher and a
lab manager at the Department for Plant Sciences. Toward Miltos Tsiantis’s work on the evolution of developmental mechanisms. | |
| The beneficiaries below received grant payments totalling less than £50,000 | |
| Gatsby Plant Science Student Network | £48,743 |
| Gatsby Technical Education Projects (GTEP) | £11,266 |
| Sainsbury Undergraduate Studentships | £37,955 |
| Student Attendance Conferences | £15,328 |
| Small grants were paid to other organisations in this category totalling £3,100 | |

