CMB Faculty studying plant molecular biology work on a variety of plant species ranging from the well – known model Arabidopsis to economically important crops such as wheat and rice. Ongoing projects are aimed at characterizing and enhancing metabolism of nutrients, as well as facilitating disease and stress resistance through modulation of immune and stress responses. Metabolomics, next – generation sequencing and synthetic biology approaches facilitate research in this area.<br><br>The Cell and Molecular Biology Program offers research opportunities from a wide variety of fields to include the molecular and cellular aspects of cancer biology, infectious disease, metabolism (includes biofuels), neuroscience, plant biology, molecular physiology, gene expression, reproductive biology, developmental biology and structural biology. The graduate program in Cell and Molecular Biology is an interdisciplinary degree-granting program that involves over 100 faculty members from 15 departments and 5 colleges who share common interests in cell and molecular biology. The program offers training leading to the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Cell and Molecular Biology, there also is a Cancer Biology specialization. The program includes a core of lecture courses in advanced molecular genetics and cell biology, in laboratory research techniques, and in ethical conduct of science, as well as elective courses in specialized areas and in grant writing, a graduate seminar series in which students present their research, and a weekly seminar series for presentations by CSU faculty and nationally prominent scientists each year. Core courses typically are completed during the first year. On average, the M.S. degree is completed within two years and the Ph.D. degree within five years.