 | |
 | |
| Abbreviation | TSL |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1988; 38 years ago (1988) |
| Type | Research institute |
| Headquarters | Norwich, UK |
Key people | Sophien Kamoun |
| Affiliations | University of East Anglia |
| Website | tsl |
The Sainsbury Laboratory (TSL) is a research institute located at theNorwich Research Park inNorwich,Norfolk,England, that carries out fundamental biological research and technology development on aspects ofplant disease,plant disease resistance andmicrobial symbiosis in plants. The Sainsbury Laboratory partners with theJohn Innes Centre on a Plant Health Institute Strategic Program (ISP) funded by theBiotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC).
In 1987, an agreement was signed to establish The Sainsbury Laboratory.[1] This agreement made the laboratory a joint venture between several organizations, including theGatsby Charitable Foundation[2] (established byDavid Sainsbury, the great-grandson of the founder of theSainsbury's chain of supermarkets), the John Innes Foundation, theUniversity of East Anglia, and the Agricultural and Food Research Council (nowBBSRC). Later that year, the laboratory employed its first members of staff. Then, in 1989, The Sainsbury Laboratory moved into its current building.[1] This building was constructed alongside theJohn Innes Centre on theNorwich Research Park.[3]
The Sainsbury Laboratory conducts research on various topics related to plant-microbe interactions.[4] It investigates innate immune recognition in plants and the signaling and cellular changes that occur during plant-microbe interactions. Additionally, researchers at the laboratory study plant and pathogen genomics to gain a better understanding of the mechanisms involved in plant-microbe interactions.[4]
One of the key areas of research is the identification and study of plant disease resistance genes. Another important research area is the biology of pathogen effector proteins, which play a crucial role in the interaction between plants and pathogens.[4] With this knowledge, the laboratory employs biotechnological approaches to develop crop disease resistance. These approaches are aimed at reducingagrochemical input and the percentage of crops lost to disease.[4]
The Sainsbury Laboratory provides a training environment with the intention of preparing post-graduate students, post-doctoral scientists and early career project leaders to excel in their careers. This includes training from the expert technology groups inplant tissue culture andtransformation, bioinformatics andcomputational biology,proteomics, andsynthetic biology as well as mentoring from established scientists. In 2021, The Sainsbury Laboratory launched a one-year taught MSc in Global Plant Health in partnership with theUniversity of East Anglia.[5]
The four core technology teams of TSL develop new technologies to enhance TSL research and provide direct expert support and guidance to the other groups of TSL.
A number of scientists have worked at TSL including;
TheGatsby Charitable Foundation is a core funder of The Sainsbury Laboratory[2] in addition toThe University of East Anglia and aBBSRC Institute Strategic Programme Grant in Plant Health (in partnership with theJohn Innes Centre). The remainder of funds are sourced from competitiveBBSRC andEuropean Research Council grants, charitable and philanthropic donations and, for some research programmes, commercial companies.[6]
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
