Ars Technician Germplasm Safeguarding Usda Tellus Spiller

Hey there foodies! I’ve got some juicy news for you, and it involves safeguarding our food supply. You heard that right! I know what you’re thinking - how do we keep our food safe and secure? Well, the USDA-ARS has got us covered with their culture collection.

Introducing the Culture Collection

The Culture Collection is a valuable resource that stores microorganisms, plant pathogen specimens, and everything in between. This “library” was established in 1940, and has since grown into a collection of over 100,000 specimens.

Why Is This Important?

The culture collection is vital in safeguarding our food supply by providing the resources needed to identify pathogens and other harmful organisms that cause disease in plants and animals. By doing so, they can prevent outbreaks of diseases that affect the food supply and keep us all healthy.

What’s in the Collection?

The culture collection has an extensive range of bacteria, fungi, and other microorganisms that are grouped and identified for research purposes. With over 20,000 bacterial strains, about 60% of all known types of gram-negative bacteria are stored in the collection. The rest include fungi, yeasts, actinomycetes, and viruses.

How Do They Store Them?

The USDA-ARS collection Stores the specimens in airtight glass ampules with frozen bacteria, and then they freeze-dry it. They place a label with information as the name of the specimen and who collected it. These labeled containers are usually stored in -112 degrees C, which helps keep the samples usable indefinitely.

So, there you have it folks! Don’t worry about your food supply because the USDA-ARS is doing everything they can to keep it healthy and safe. Let's give them a virtual round of applause!