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About IPSR
The Institute was founded in 1914 as the "Oohara Institute for Agricultural
Research" by Magosaburo Oohara, a leading citizen of Kurashiki City,
with the purpose of advancing agricultural sciences.
After the Second World War, the Institute became affiliated with the
School of Agricultural Science of Okayama University founded in 1951, and
became the"Institute for Agricultural Biology"under the direct
supervision of the University in 1953. Initially, five research divisions
were organized; Applied Entomology, Biochemistry, Plant Genetics, Plant
Pathology and Plant Physiology. Later new divisions were added, Micrometeorology
in 1960, Biological Water Quality in 1966 (the name of this division was
changed to Water Quality in 1975), Weed Science in 1970 and the Barley
Germplasm Center in 1979.
The Institute has carried out research on bioresources from an array of viewpoints for 70 years. The English name of the Institute was officially changed to the "Institute for Agricultural and Biological Sciences, Okayama University" in 1970.
In order to meet the new scientific and social demands, the Institute was reorganized and renamed" The Research Institute for Bioresources, Okayama University" in 1988. The new Institute was composed of three divisions including nine laboratories, a division for a Foreign Visiting Professor and the Barley Germplasm Center. The last division and the center were unified to establish the Barley and Wild Plant Resource Center in 1997. Again this institute was reorganized in 2003. The new organization is composed of the Division of Functional Biology and Genetics, the Division of Environmental Response Analysis, and the Barley and Wild Plant Resource Center.
In 2004, Okayama University along with a number of other Universities were restructured and realigned under the National University Corporation system. Since the institute was approved in June, 2009 as a center-of-excellence in the fields of “plant genetic resources and plant stress science” by the Ministry of Education, Sports, Culture, Science and Technology, Japan, it is reorganized to be “Institute of Plant Science and Resources (IPSR)” on April 1, 2010, as a joint usage/research center for scientists in Japan, focusing on plant stres researches utilizing genetic resources of barley and wild plant species.
This institute also contributes to the education of students in the Graduate School of Natural Science and Technology and Graduate School of Environmental Science (Master's and Doctor's Degree Course of Okayama University).
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Japanese