Research Infrastructure: Sustaining the Operation of the UTEX Culture Collection of Algae

Algae are essential photosynthetic organisms that profoundly affect the global environment, ecology, and economy. The Culture Collection of Algae at the University of Texas at Austin (UTEX) is one of only a handful of large, publicly available algal biodiversity collections in the world, one of just two such collections in the U.S., and the sole collection in the U.S. focusing on freshwater and soil algae.

The UTEX Collection is among the most diverse assemblages of living organisms available to the public and many of the algae maintained by UTEX are unique and irreplaceable. UTEX distributes thousands of living algal cultures to scientists, educators, and students throughout the U.S. and the world. Great interest in algae as sources of transportation fuels, human food, animal feed, pharmaceuticals, and many other uses makes the cultures and services provided by UTEX essential resources for researchers.

Every year, approximately 1,000 published research articles, many of which recognize NSF support, reference the use of UTEX algae. UTEX provides extensive student training, hands-on workshops on managing algal cultures, an informative interactive web site, species identification services, chemical composition analysis, and extensive correspondence with students engaged in algal research.

UTEX personnel give presentations at public schools, conduct tours of UTEX facilities, assist teachers and students in conducting high school science projects, and provide presentations on the scientific importance of algae to hundreds of school children at local open house events.

UTEX is a curated public collection that serves as a permanent, living repository of algal biodiversity. It provides uniformity and stability of stocks and related materials that are necessary for the continuity and reproducibility of algal research and education. UTEX currently maintains 3,077 accessioned strains of living algae, including representatives of the cyanobacteria and all major eukaryotic clades, with 1,587 named species spanning 580 genera.

The UTEX mission is to promote, support, and enable the use of algae for research, education, and practical applications. The primary goals of UTEX that fulfill this mission are (1) maintaining a well-curated permanent repository for algal biodiversity that insures the continuity and consistency of algal research; (2) providing living algal cultures and related materials to the user community at a modest cost; (3) acting as a source of information regarding algae to researchers, educators, and the interested public; and (4) participating in outreach to the user community through training, support services, and materials.

The UTEX website facilitates a secure means for ordering goods and services, provides links to other resources pertaining to algae, and includes diverse algae-related information. Rigorous quality-control procedures are in place and a handbook of standard operating procedures is maintained and updated in order to ensure a high level of security for UTEX strains and safety for those who work with them.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.