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WORKSHOP  - Advances in cryopreservation methods for microorganisms and plants

21st June 2016 in Berlin just before the GGBN Conference 2016

Cryopreservation is now considered as the best 'ex situ' preservation approach for microorganisms. However, this is still problematic for some taxonomic groups. The subject of this workshop will be to provide an overview of recent applications of preservation methods to organisms considered as delicate or difficult to preserve. The BCCM/DCG and BCCM/ULC collections of diatoms and cyanobacteria will present results from the BRAIN-be project PRESPHOTO on the cryopreservation of their strains. Participants are welcome to present their data and share their experience with cryopreservation of prokaryotic and eukaryotic microorganisms and plants.

The purpose of this workshop is to share experience about cryopreservation of delicate or recalcitrant organisms, propose advices and build a community of interested scientists for future initiatives. The workshop is organized in two parts, with lectures and a round table discussion. The first part of the workshop will start with a lecture by Prof John Day (Culture Collection of Algae and Protozoa, SAMS, Scottish Marine Institute, UK), a recognized expert, on the basic principles of cryopreservation in culture collections. This will be followed by the presentation of the results of the PRESPHOTO project, concerning the improvement and validation of cryopreservation protocols for diatoms and cyanobacteria. Thereafter, Dr. Maike Lorenz curator at the Culture Collection of Algae at Goettingen University (SAG, Germany) will share her experience with the cryopreservation of microalgae at SAG with a particular emphasis on the detection of genetic and epigenetic stability. 

Details about the workshop can be found here:  PROGRAM, ABSTRACTS and REPORT.

Organizing committee:

Charlotte Crahay and Annick Wilmotte, University of Liège, Belgium, charlotte.crahay@ulg.ac.be, a.wilmotte@ulg.ac.be

Olga Chepurnova and Wim Vyverman, University of Ghent, Belgium