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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Beltsville, Maryland (BARC) » Beltsville Agricultural Research Center » National Germplasm Resources Laboratory » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #326354
Title: Introduction to the newly released GRIN-Global

Author
item Kinard, Gary
item Bockelman, Harold
item Eizenga, Georgia
item Reisinger, Martin

Submitted to: Rice Technical Working Group Meeting Proceedings
Publication Type: Proceedings
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/10/2016
Publication Date: 7/2/2017
Citation: Kinard, G.R., Bockelman, H.E., Eizenga, G.C., Reisinger, M.A. 2017. Introduction to the newly released GRIN-Global. Rice Technical Working Group Meeting Proceedings. 2016 Proceedings available on CDROM, page 72.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: The Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN) is an information management system that curates data for the USDA-ARS genetic resource collections. GRIN was developed in the late 1980s and has been incrementally improved over the past 35 years. A major revision was recently deployed to service the U.S. National Plant Germplasm System (NPGS), which curates more than 575,000 active plant germplasm accessions important to both U.S. and global food and agriculture. The new genebank management system is called GRIN-Global. It is being developed with international partners as freely available software that can help harmonize information management and allow more rational maintenance and utilization of collections. Several institutions in countries outside the U.S. are already using GRIN-Global. The NPGS began using GRIN-Global on November 30, 2015. It consists of two interconnected applications- the Curator Tool (CT) and the Public Website (PW). The CT is a Microsoft Windows desktop application that allows NPGS staff to enter and modify data on accessions and manage daily workflows, especially order request processing. The PW is an internet browser based application that allows clients and customers to search the database for a wide array of information, and request germplasm. The interfaces for both the CT and PW are significantly different from the prior applications used by the NPGS. Hence, user training and outreach are an important component of making the transition to GRIN-Global. New features and functions have been added, and more will be forthcoming. The evolution of GRIN-Global must occur within the context of significantly increased federal oversight and emphasis on security issues for .gov information management systems. A member of the GRIN-Global Development Team will demonstrate the Public Website for the Rice Technical Working Group. Emphasis will be on strategies for searching the collections and how to request germplasm using the new interface. The PW search page is available at https://npgsweb.ars-grin.gov/gringlobal/search.aspx.