Core Facilities
Innovative plant science requires cutting-edge technologies. Our Core Facilities are centers of excellence, housing domain experts and cutting-edge technology. Our teams provide services to internal users, external academic labs, and companies as both self-service equipment rental and full-service experimentation and analyses. Our Core Directors are also Principal Investigators, who research and apply advanced technologies with the support of private and federal grants. To learn more about how you can use the services of the Core Facilities, pricing, and availability, see each Facility page and the database below.
Small Business Discount
Small businesses in the St. Louis metropolitan area receive a 15% discount on all services and equipment rental. To qualify, the company’s billing zip code must be in the St. Louis metropolitan area (list here: St-Louis-Metro). Employees must operate out of the St. Louis metropolitan area address and be capable of being physically present at the Danforth Center during the time of service, if needed. Companies must meet small business qualifications as determined by the Small Business Association. To meet these qualifications, companies must provide NAICS code and the number of total employees or millions of dollars. Note: The total number of employees is used in this determination, not the number of employees at the St. Louis metropolitan location. If the “company” is a site of a larger parent organization, the entire organization is considered for small business qualification. Companies that are outside of the St. Louis metropolitan area that do not qualify as a small business, are also welcome to use the Core Facility services, but do not receive a discount.
Advanced Bioimaging Laboratory
Our Advanced Bioimaging Laboratory is critical to understanding the inner workings of cells and tissues of plants and their interactions with the environment. It offers high resolution and dynamic imaging including contemporary light, confocal, super-resolution, and electron microscopy as well as advanced sample preparation and analysis tools for our scientists.
Data Science
Our Data Science Facility is a computing and data analytics hub that develops and deploys technologies in computational biology, computer science, mathematics, and statistics to accelerate discoveries from data and models in plant science. It provides the horsepower needed to analyze vast amounts of information - big data - critical to understanding the multi-scale form and function of plants.
Plant Growth
Our Plant Growth Facility is a cutting-edge research complex providing users with access to a variety of controlled environments as well as expert horticultural services. The PGF includes over 54,000 sq. ft. of research-grade greenhouse space and 100 growth chambers equipped with advanced climate control technologies to promote discovery in fundamental plant science research and new product development.
Plant Transformation
The Plant Transformation Facility focuses on the exploration and utilization of genetic engineering technologies to generate transgenic plants to accelerate plant biology research and crop improvement. The facility provides full-service plant transformation and plant cell biology services, training, consulting and access to state-of-the-art equipment to the plant research community.
