Skip to main content
ARS Home » Plains Area » Fort Collins, Colorado » Center for Agricultural Resources Research » Agricultural Genetic Resources Preservation Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #394895
Research Project: Efficient and Effective Preservation and Management of Plant and Microbial Genetic Resource Collections

Location: Agricultural Genetic Resources Preservation Research

Title: Safeguarding plant genetic resource collections for agriculture

Author
item Volk, Gayle
item Walters, Christina
item Warburton, Marilyn
item Bretting, Peter

Submitted to: CSA News
Publication Type: Trade Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 5/31/2022
Publication Date: 6/20/2022
Citation: Volk, G.M., Walters, C.T., Warburton, M.L., Bretting, P.K. 2022. Safeguarding plant genetic resource collections for agriculture. CSA News. 67(7):34-36. https://doi.org/10.1002/csan.20785.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/csan.20785

Interpretive Summary: Genebanks conserve plant genetic resources (PGR) for research and to breed higher quality, more productive, resilient crops. Genebank collections may be maintained as seeds in cold storage or as actively growing plants in the field, greenhouse, or in vitro. It’s imperative that PGR collections are duplicated to prevent possible losses due to fire, cataclysmic weather, and pests. The USDA National Laboratory for Genetic Resource Preservation (NLGRP) in Fort Collins, Colorado employs both freezer and cryostorage to secure PGR collections for the U. S. National Plant Germplasm System (NPGS) and several international and national PGR collections. Currently, about 80% of the samples of NPGS’s collections of seed-propagated PGR are duplicated at NLGRP, with the ultimate goal of attaining the highly stringent FAO standards of seed quality. The security of PGR collections is increasingly important as collections age, regional weather patterns shift, and armed conflicts erupt. No national or international PGR system is immune to those dangers, making it even more important to build national, regional, and international collaborations to develop and adopt innovative, forward-thinking strategies for safeguarding PGR and optimally managing genebank collections.

Technical Abstract: Genebanks conserve plant genetic resources (PGR) for research and to breed higher quality, more productive, resilient crops. Genebank collections may be maintained as seeds in cold storage or as actively growing plants in the field, greenhouse, or in vitro. It’s imperative that PGR collections are duplicated to prevent possible losses due to fire, cataclysmic weather, and pests. The USDA National Laboratory for Genetic Resource Preservation (NLGRP) in Fort Collins, Colorado employs both freezer and cryostorage to secure PGR collections for the U. S. National Plant Germplasm System (NPGS) and several international and national PGR collections. Currently, about 80% of the samples of NPGS’s collections of seed-propagated PGR are duplicated at NLGRP, with the ultimate goal of attaining the highly stringent FAO standards of seed quality. The security of PGR collections is increasingly important as collections age, regional weather patterns shift, and armed conflicts erupt. No national or international PGR system is immune to those dangers, making it even more important to build national, regional, and international collaborations to develop and adopt innovative, forward-thinking strategies for safeguarding PGR and optimally managing genebank collections.