MEMBG staff recently received an urgent request from Professor Leslie D. Gottlieb at UC Davis for fresh, young leaves of Hauya heydeana. World-renowned for his pioneering use of molecular and genetic techniques to study evolutionary relationships among plant species and populations, Professor Gottlieb is currently focusing on the evening primrose family, Onagraceae. H. heydeana is one of the crucial species required for his comparative DNA studies, and MEMBG appears to be the sole source in the United States for this unusual species. DNA from one of our three plant specimens was extracted and then amplified using PCR (famous from its use in criminal trials). Now Professor Gottlieb will compare the base sequence of the nuclear gene PgiC, which encodes for an enzyme essential in the synthesis of the sugar sucrose.
MEMBG is one link in a worldwide network of living collections, any of which may be asked to provide living or dried plant materials, free of charge, for laboratory research. No single collection can grow every plant or keep living materials on hand for every occasion on which they might be needed. Thus, this network is vital for researchers, who, due to legal restrictions or other obstacles, cannot collect such specimens in a given plant's country of origin. Just as researchers at other universities may request samples from MEMBG, UCLA researchers may ask other institutions for help in acquiring plant materials.