CSBR-Ownership Transfer: Curate, Preserve and Transfer Agriculturally and Environmentally Significant Microorganisms to established laboratories equipped for preservation and distr

University Of Hawaii, Honolulu

Investigators

Abstract

The goal of this project is to revitalize and transfer a large culture collection of plant-associated bacteria from the Pacific Bacterial Collection, which is currently located in Hawaii to an established laboratory on the U.S. mainland where the bacteria can be safely stored, re-cultured and distributed to scientists nationwide. The collection consists of more than 6,000 bacterial strains collected over a 40 year period from worldwide origins and habitats and represents a national treasure for microbiologists, educators, and professionals in agricultural and food industry. Historically valuable microbial germplasm will be documented and preserved. The collection is a national resource for scientists in diverse disciplines and supports collaborative contemporary research on taxonomy, genomics, detection technology and forensic epidemiology. The collection's size, novelty, and diversity permits data analysis of well-characterized reference strains on a scale not previously possible. This will be a valuable resource for identifying and characterizing microbes associated with diseased/compromised trade goods and will enhance educational and training opportunities for aspiring microbial taxonomists. Access to this large collection of strains from a centrally-located laboratory serves the national interest by enabling both industry and the non-profit biological research community to access selected strains at a minimal cost. Bacterial strains will be revitalized, annotated and prepared for transfer to designated staff at Agdia, Inc., located in Indiana. Purity of each culture will be confirmed, duplicates will be eliminated and data for each strain will be added to a unified and modernized database. The focus of this project will be on the transfer of strains that represent genetic bacterial diversity as determined by DNA sequence analysis of multiple bacterial genes, development of molecular diagnostic tests, and strains originally used in Hawaii to screen hybridoma cell lines for production of pathogen-specific monoclonal antibodies. Publications describing genetic characteristics and population diversity will be referenced in the database. Remaining strains will be organized, validated and documented over a three year period allowing total transfer of up to 6,000 strains. Creation of a modernized unified database, which includes relevant data for individual strains is a major undertaking that will enable researchers, students and regulatory personnel to make informed selections before requesting a culture. User fees for culturing, shipping and compliance with federal and state regulations will result in sustained support. The back-up storage of reference strains will ensure the long-term integrity of the collection and will serve as a valuable scientific resource. Characteristics of each strain are currently being organized into a database maintained at the University of Hawaii. After the project is completed the data accompanying each culture will be transferred to Agdia, Inc. enabling public access (www.agdia.com).