Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR)

Magnetic resonance is a non-invasive technique with an infinitely broad range of applications in plant biotechnology, plant physiology, natural products and food processing research and development. PBI's NMR personnel work with PBI researchers and in collaboration with external agencies, to develop novel non-destructive methods to meet these challenges. The laboratory is well equipped for multinuclear studies with a 500 MHz Bruker Avance system for high resolution studies complimented with a CryoProbe system for greater sensitivity and a 360 MHz Avance WB system fitted for work on solids, including Magic Angle Spinning (MAS) and microimaging.

Recent Studies:

• In situ MRI of water uptake and redistribution in seeds such as barley and conifers is being used to assess the role of seed moisture content in effective dormancy breakage and germination and to evaluate likely causes of seed deterioration during storage (9).
• NMR methods are being developed in collaboration with government and forest industry partners to predict conifer seeds viability and germinative potential. These methods include ³¹P NMR of ATP/ADP turnover to examine energetic status of seeds and in situ ¹³C NMR metabolite profiling in seeds following germination.
• Salt stress in plants is being studied in vitro using ³¹P and ²³Na NMR on suspension cell cultures to facilitate rapid determination of Na+/H+ exchanger overexpression. These experiments are designed to assist plant breeders in the selection of genetically engineered salt tolerant plants (8).
• Water distribution patterns in canola pods are being studied by MRI to complement biochemical studies of the origins of pod shattering and freezing effects on seed maturation (10).
• Plant metabolism studies involving amino acid metabolic pathways, the uptake and transport of ions into cells and compartments and carbon flux studies using ¹³C precursors for fatty acid synthesis (8).
• Microimaging studies of water uptake and redistribution in germinating seeds such as soybeans and barley to assist in the development of traits and quality improvement (3-5).
• Single seed oil analysis using MAS NMR on intact single canola seeds to provide information on oil content and unsaturation levels to assist in breeding programs (7).
• NMR of solid samples is being used in agricultural studies to measure the organic residues in soils (6).
• Determination of chemical structure and conformation of molecules related to plant hormones are determined by NMR (1-2,10).

Literature

1. C. Periappuram, L. Steinhauer, D.L. Barton, D.C. Taylor, B. Chatson and J. Zou. 2000. Plant Physiology, Vol. 122, pp. 1193-1199.
2. G. Lin, P. Rose, K.B. Chatson, E.M. Hawes, X.G. Zhao, and Z.T. Wang. 2000. J. of Natural Products, 63, 857-860.
3. M.L.H. Gruwel, B. Chatson, X.S. Yin and S. Abrams. 2001. Int. J. Food Science & Technology, 36, 161-168.
4. M.L.H. Gruwel, B. Chatson, X. Yin and S. Abrams. Dec. 2000. Book Title: Molecular Biology and Physiology of Water and Solute Transport. pp. 289-296.
5. L.N. Pietrzak, J. Fregeau-Reid, B. Chatson and B. Blackwell. 2002. Can. J. of Plant Science, 82, 513-519.
6. A. Faz Cano, A.R. Mermut, R. Ortiz, M.B. Benke, and B. Chatson. 2002. Can. J. of Soil Science, 82, 403-411.
7. J. Zou,V. Katavic, E.M. Giblin, D.L. Barton, S.L. MacKensie, W.A. Keller, X. Hu and D.C. Taylor. 1997. Plant Cell. 9:909-923.
8. M.L.H. Gruwel, V.L. Rauw, M. Loewen, S.R. Abrams. 2001. Plant Sci., 160, 785-794.
9. M.L.H. Gruwel, X.S. Yin, M.J. Edney, S.W. Schroeder, A.W. MacGrgor, and S. Abrams. 2002 J. Agri. And F. Chem., Vol. 50, #4, pp. 667-676.
10. Zhou, R., S.J. Ambrose, M.M. Galka, A.J. Cutler, T.M. Squires, M.K. Loewen, K. Nelson, A. Jadhav, D.C. Taylor and S.R. Abrams. 2004. Plant Physiology, in press.

This facility is available to third-party clients or companies incubating at NRC-PBI through collaborative research projects or on a fee-for-service basis.

Contact:

Brock Chatson, Manager, NMR at Brock.Chatson@nrc-cnrc.gc.ca
Phone: (306) 975-5238.

Dr. Sue Abrams, Research Officer at Sue.Abrams@nrc-cnrc.gc.ca
Phone: (306) 975-5333.