![A congratulatory banner from the Joint Genome Institute (JGI) for the CSP Functional Genomics Call recipients. The image features portraits of nine recipients arranged in a grid. The top row includes four portraits: a man with glasses in a light checkered shirt, a woman with short brown hair and glasses in a burgundy lace top, a man with a beard and glasses in a black shirt, and a man in a black jacket with glasses. The bottom row includes five portraits: a woman with long brown hair smiling, a woman with glasses and long brown hair in a white top, a man with short dark hair in a blue checkered shirt, a man in a light blue shirt, and a man with short light brown hair wearing a dark striped shirt, holding a plant. The banner's background is white with an orange top section, displaying the text: "Congratulations to our CSP Functional Genomics Call recipients!" The JGI logo is in the top right corner.](https://jgi.doe.gov/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/LedeImage_CSPFG24.png)
Picture from left to right: (top) Hal Alper, Jennifer Bridwell-Rabb, Alan Culbertson, Steven Hallam, and Scott Miller; (bottom) Lauren Rajakovich, Kathleen Scott, Catalin Voiniciuc and Philipp Zerbe
Each year, the JGI accepts proposals for state-of-the-art functional genomics research from reseachers who translate genomic information into biological function. Through our CSP Functional Genomics call, we look for projects that will leverage the JGI’s DNA synthesis and omics capabilities to enhance understanding of gene and genome function. Tapping into these functions allows researchers to use them for engineering applications in support of advancing the bioeconomy.
This year’s project goals range from improving crop productivity for bioenergy through enhanced red-light energy capture, enhancing atmospheric carbon sequestration into sustainable biomaterials, and developing high-throughput methods to reveal metabolic pathways that could ultimately enable new or more efficient biotechnologies.
Below find a list of the nine researchers accepted for 2024. Proposals are accepted year-round; the next deadline is Jan. 30, 2025.
Name | Affiliation | Proposal Title |
Alper, Hal | University of Texas at Austin | Elucidation of novel plastizymes via a protein library based on a multi-omic statistical learning approach |
Bridwell-Rabb, Jennifer | University of Michigan | Illuminating the structure-function relationships in Chlorophyll metabolic enzymes |
Culbertson, Alan | Iowa State University | Determination of physiological substrate of Sorghum ABC Transporters for improved bioenergy crops |
Hallam, Steven | University of British Columbia | Developing a high-throughput functional screening surface display platform for strategic metal recovery from environmental transcriptomes |
Miller, Scott | University of Montana | Identification of the Chlorophyll d synthase: Implications for far-red light photosynthesis by crops |
Rajakovich, Lauren | University of Washington | Family-wide functional annotation of transcriptional regulator proteins for the discovery of microbial catabolic pathways |
Scott, Kathleen | University of South Florida | Distribution of bicarbonate uptake ability among the ubiquitous and diverse SulP family transporters |
Voiniciuc, Cătălin | University of Florida | Rapid prototyping of plant hemicellulose biosynthesis in yeast |
Zerbe, Philipp | University of California, Davis | Functional characterization of terpenoid-biosynthetic networks in switchgrass, millet, maize and poplar toward bioenergy and bioproduct engineering |