The funding scope of the Division covers botany and microbiology, focusing on classic disciplines such as plant and microbe research in bio-resources, system evolution, metabolism, etc.

Microbiology

It supports basic research in microbes in areas of resources and taxonomy, systematics and evolution, fauna and ecology, genetics and development, physiology and metabolism from various perspectives and at different levels.

The completion of Human Genome Plan and the coming of Post-genomics era have provided microbiology with an unprecedented opportunity for development. Large-scaled microbial sequencing, functional genomic studies and the establishment of related technical platforms have greatly pushed forward the development of microbiology and the research progress of life science. As microbiologic research has come to the knowledge of nucleic acid and protein molecular structure and their function, the traditional disciplinary lines between genetics and development, physiology and metabolism are becoming vague, and the merger among various disciplines is increased, leading us to a more complete and true understanding of laws governing life.

Since studies on microbial species and their genetic resources, microbial genomics and gene function, microbial proteomics and protein function, microbial metabolic pathways and their regulation, the interaction of microbes and host, functional microbes and microbe model are all current hot areas and core components of this discipline, as well as the areas where Chinese scientists have made noticeable progress, research in these areas will be encouraged in the following years.

Analysis of proposals received and projects funded by the Division in the past three years suggests that the workforce of microbial research in China as a whole increases continually and is developing healthily, with the potential of competing in some areas in the world. There still, however, exist such weaknesses as obviously decentralized research workforce. Now, the main deficiency in microbiology research in China is the lack of either high-level and substantial research collaboration or interdisciplinary crosscutting, showing that some research with early original findings can not go deep. Few innovation projects are proposed based on available unique materials. Sometimes new and innovative idea is proposed but workforce is too weak to implement it. Research innovation is greatly limited by both the applicants' knowledge structure and the workforce.

In recent years, NSFC launched a series of measures to encourage research innovation, and called for projects with creative ideas and funded them through various approaches. In 2002 and 2003, the funding intensity in the area of microbiology was increased largely and most outstanding projects with obvious creative ideas were supported. Besides, the Division gives an important consideration on the performance of applicant's previous project when evaluating his/her new application, and implements the policy of funding-performance linkage in real earnest.

In order to stabilize research workforce and to bring up new specialists on classic fungi taxonomy, the Division will give a preferential support to this field.

Botany

Along with the development of botany, many newly growing research areas come forth as a result of the interpenetration and crosscutting between different disciplines, and research on major scientific and technological issues of botanical science is developing towards internationalization and multi-disciplinary involvement.

The analysis of applications received and projects funded by the Division in the past few years shows that the number of applications involving plant phylogeny and evolution, phytohormones, plant growth and development, water potential and resistant physiology is relatively large and new techniques are widely used. Functional studies of newly cloned genes have particularly become a hot area of application. However, applications involving resource plants are relatively insufficient, which is obviously unmatched to the rich resources of our country. The Division will encourage research with multi-disciplinary involvement, particularly crosscutting from chemistry, genomics and bioinformatics in that area in order to contribute to the conservation and use plant resources guided by scientific theories in China.

A stable and well-trained workforce is particularly important in classical taxonomy, as it is the foundation of other branches in this discipline. Therefore, a special fund has been set up by the Department to support research in classical systematics. According to the characteristic of botany, the Division will give preferential support to research targeting on important populations and dominant species or genus and highlight the investigation of geographical flora in key or vacant areas.

The Division welcomes proposals with creative ideas or innovative approaches, especially those projects related to new genes or new structures with our own intellectual property and new theories or new ideas proposed based on long-term research. It encourages substantial interdisciplinary crosscutting and continually intensifies support on young scholars having creative ideas.

Research in phytotomy and phytoembryology has developed from mainly the description of structure, morphogenesis and developmental process to the exploration of mechanisms underlying structure-function relationship and regulation of reproductive process. In the future, the application with advanced theories and technical approaches such as three-dimensional reconstruction, image analysis, immunochemisty, genomics and proteomics will be further addressed, and a high value will be placed on the mechanisms underlying phytomorphoresis and its regulation in plant development process and the theories that will promote the development of this discipline.

Research approaches in plant taxonomy, plant phylogeny and evolution are becoming increasingly complicated. Molecular taxonomic studies have developed into doing comprehensive analyses of multiple molecular fragments. In the future, the integration of micro-research with macro-research, outdoor investigation with indoor experiment should be strengthened in the studies of speciation, phylogeny and evolution, biogeography, biodiversity and conservation. Appropriate research approaches in addition to molecular means should be employed accordingly with the problems to be solved. The exploration of new theories and techniques is highly encouraged.

Along with the progress in plant genomics, studies in the field of phytophysiology are increasingly embracing with genetics and molecular biology. Encouragement will be given to in-depth studies and synthetic analyses on the mechanism underlying energy metabolism, growth and development regulation, adaptability and stress resistance, mass and information flows in plants at molecular, cellular and individual levels.

Research on resource plants which are rich in China covers vegetation resource, species resource and metabolite (especially secondary metabolites) resource. While some studies on unique plants in China have been conducted, evaluation studies on the unique endangered plants and economically important plants, however, should be further highlighted, particularly on the sustainable utilization of plants with practical value by using modern biotechnology and methods.