Provasoli-Guillard National Center for Culture of Marine Phytoplankton

Bigelow Laboratory For Ocean Sciences, East Boothbay ME

Investigators

Abstract

Abstract This award renews support for a collection of unicellular marine algae, including both eukaryotic and bacterial strains that make up phytoplankton in the open oceans. The collection also includes a few multicellular algae (seaweeds). Most of the collected strains were first isolated from samples taken in benthic regions of the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. However, a significant fraction of the collection is made up of isolates from polar regions that have optimal growth within a few degrees of freezing. The collection provides samples to academic and industrial researchers at a modest charge, and provides help in identification of unknown strains and training in culture techniques on an occasional basis. Because of the importance of phytoplankton in the productivity of the ocean ecosystems, the collection is an important resource for biologists and oceanographers. The collection is the largest and only comprehensive collection of marine algae in the US.