This activity has been part of the first phase of Arborea (2002-2006). The research was led by Dr. Sharon Regan at Carleton University in Ottawa.

Our objective was to produce a large-scale population of poplar through activation tagging. This population will permit us to discover through gain-of-function mutagenesis, genes that have a putative role in vascular development or defense response. Our milestones were:

1. Large-scale production of activation tagged lines in controlled greenhouses
   
2. Screen lines for phenotypes related to vascular development and defense response
3. Detailed phenotypic analysis, and isolation of the activated genes
4. Long term growth and analysis of the activation tagged lines