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Project Plan:

Curation and Research to Safeguard and Expand Collections of Plant and Microbial Genetic Resources and Associated Descriptive Information

Project Summary:

The National Laboratory for Genetic Resources Preservation (NLGRP) provides essential infrastructure for the National Plant Germplasm System (NPGS). Unique in its mission, facilities, and staffing expertise, NLGRP houses the world’s largest collection of plant genetic resources (PGR), which are stored in freezer or cryogenic platforms. Germplasm (or propagules), such as seeds, shoot tips, dormant buds, and pollen, come from NPGS sites to back-up USDA’s PGR collections in a centralized genebank dedicated to keeping germplasm alive for decades, even centuries. NLGRP also provides back-up services for other institutions, who, like USDA, promise to make their PGR available for research.  Genebanking, itself, can be viewed as a huge experiment in trying to make time stand still, not changing the viability or genetic identity of samples. This challenge is addressed by research on how to achieve and maintain survival in diverse germplasm that respond differently to preservation.  Skilled staff conducts time-consuming work to identify, precisely dissect, cryopreserve, and recover tiny propagules, often without a priori knowledge of germination or growth requirements and often using in vitro techniques.  New tools will be developed to find novel diversity and characterize diversity that may be susceptible to genetic erosion in genebanks. This will contribute to revised Best Practices that improve genebank performance. For NPGS’s massive collection, data management is a key feature to ensure information generated by NLGRP is available and linked to the physical sample and to evaluate potential changes to the samples due to preservation. As more genebanks are established globally, NLGRP supports the steady need for scientific support related to new approaches and technologies and provides training through on-site interactions and online materials.