Research project C3/014 (Research action C3)
Context
Biological Resource Centres (BRCs) are recognized as key component of the scientific and technological infrastructure of life sciences and biotechnology (OECD report March 2001, www.SourceOECD.org). BRCs contain collections of culturable (micro)organisms, replicable parts of these, viable but not yet culturable organisms, cells and tissues, as well as databases containing molecular, physiological and structural information relevant to these collections.
In Belgium, four complementary research-based public service collections, each embedded in the Universities or Scientific Institutes from which they originated, operate as a National Network of BRCs, the Belgian Coordinated Collections of Microorganisms (BCCM), coordinated by the Federal Science Policy.
Description of the project
The ‘Belgian Coordinated Collections of Microorganisms’ (BCCM) are a consortium of decentralised Biological Resource Centres, currently encompassing: BCCM/LMG bacteria (Ghent University), BCCM/MUCL agro-industrial fungi & yeasts (Université Catholique de Louvain-la-Neuve), BCCM/IHEM bio-medical fungi & yeasts (Scientific Institute Public Health Brussels), and BCCM/LMBP plasmid and cDNA libraries (Ghent University). These collections of biological materials, related information and scientific know how are at the disposal of the scientific community.
Within the present project, the project partners aim to enlarge the patrimony and to broaden the scope and domain of the BCCM consortium by linking additional collections of interesting organism types, present in research laboratories.
From the several research collections present in Belgian institutes, three collections were selected based on the extend of their holdings, their uniqueness, and the level of scientific expertise associated: the Diatom collection at the Ghent University, the collection of Polar Cyanobacteria at the University of Liège, and the collection of Mycobacteria at the Institute for Tropical Medicine in Antwerp.
Despite of their clear interest for scientific, industrial, environmental and medical R&D applications, all three organism types are to date largely under-represented in the public biological resource centres (BRCs) world-wide.
The vast expertise in the management and operation of a biological resource centre built by BCCM and more specifically, BCCM/LMG will be made available to the project partners to facilitate their transition from research collections to research-based public BRCs.
Due to the active involvement of BCCM/LMG in international BRC-related initiatives and networks such as CABRI, EBRCN, ECCO, WFCC, GBIF, OECD etc., BCCM/LMG is well in the position to provide this expert guidance.
To achieve this aim, 11 Work packages (WPs) are defined:
WP 1: Selection of strains/isolates to be made publicly available
WP 2: Check of viability and purity of the selected strains/isolates
WP 3: Check of authenticity
WP 4: Optimization of preservation techniques
WP 5: Conservation of strains/isolates
WP 6: Further phenotypic and/or genotypic characterization
WP 7: Restructuring of databases in compliance with existing BCCM formats
WP 8: Creation of Internet-supported Homepage of the collections and integrate these into the BCCM website
WP 9: Design of Quality Control procedures
WP 10: Design of a legal and administrative framework to operate a public service collection
WP 11: Support and coordination
The project will allow the Diatom, Polar Cyanobacteria and Mycobacteria collections to evolve from in-house research collections to research-based public service collections linked to the BCCM, open for all legitimate users and operating within a legal framework.
The on-line presentation of the catalogues of their holdings via the BCCM website will significantly enhance their visibility and facilitate their accessibility.
Valorization is specific for the different types of microorganisms but highlight different valorization domains such as biodiversity, bioactive compounds, and medical microbiology.
Extending the domain of the BCCM by linking additional biological resources will reinforce its position as renewed BRC and as platform for life sciences and biotechnology.
Furthermore, this project will assist the Belgian government to respond to the recommendations and the call for action as set forth in the OECD report (March 2001), by selectively seeking to strengthen valuable ex-situ collections, and support the development of these collections towards the quality required for recognition as BRC.
Partners
The current project largely builds on the expertise that BCCM/LMG gathered since the Belgian Science Policy launched the BCCM initiative in 1983.
In the context of this project, BCCM/LMG (Partner 1, coordinator) will make its expertise in the management and operational aspects of BRCs available for the project partners.
These collections are:
- a diatom collection of approximately 100 genera, representing all important phylogenetic branches and ecological groups. (University of Ghent, Partner 2)
- a polar cyanobacteria collection of 200 antarctic strains, representing the orders of Chroococcales, Oscillatoriales and Nostocales. (University of Liege, Partner 3)
- a mycobacteria collection of human and animal pathogen strains of which the most important are M. tuberculosis, M. leprae and M. ulcerans. (Institute of Tropical Medecine in Antwerp, Partner 4).
Partner 1 (coordinator) : BCCM/LMG, Universiteit Gent
Promotor: Prof. Paul De Vos
Laboratorium voor Microbiologie
K.L. Ledeganckstraat 35
9000 Gent
Tel: 09 264 5110
Fax: 09 264 5092
Email: Paul.devos@ugent.be
http://lmg.UGent.be; http://bccm.belspo.be/
Partner 2: Collectie diatomeeën, Universiteit Gent
Promotor: Prof. Wim Vijverman
Laboratorium Protistologie en Aquatische Ecologie (PAE)
Krijgslaan 281, S8
9000 Gent
Tel: 09 264 85 01
Fax: 09 264 85 99
Email: wim.vijverman@ugent.be
www.pae.ugent.be
Partner 3: Collection de cyanobacteries polaires, Université de Liège (Ulg)
Promotor: Dr. Annick Wilmotte
C.I.P.
Sart Tilman B6
4000 LIEGE
Tel: 04/366.38.56
Fax: 04/366.33.64
Email: awilmotte@ulg.ac.be
www.cip.ulg.ac.be
Partner 4: Collectie Mycobacteriën, Prince Leopold Institute of Tropical Medicine (ITG)
Promotor: Prof. Françoise Portaels
Mycobacteriology unit
Nationalestraat 155
B-2000 Antwerp
Tel: 03 2476538
Fax: 03 2476333
Email: kjanssens@itg.be
www.itg.be
User Committee
Representative users from Research Institutes, Public Organisations and Industry expressed their interest in the project and its expected outcomes, and are willing to actively contribute to the project:
Member 1: Royal Botanical Garden Edinburgh, UK (Research Institute)
Member 2: Universiteit van Luik, Departement van Astrofysica, Geofysica en Oceanografie, BE (Research Institute)
Member 3: Vicuron Pharmaceuticals (Industry) & Universiteit van Insubria, Departement Biotechnologie en Moleculaire Wetenschappen (Research Institute) , Varese Italië
Member 4: World Health Organization, Geneve, Zwitserland (Public Organisation)
Member 5: Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceuticals, Beerse, BE (Industry)
Member 6: Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Departement Organische Chemie, BE (Research Institute)
Member 7: IMEC, BE (Research Institute)
Member 8: Vlaams Instituut voor de Zee VLIZ, BE (Research Institute)
Member 9: Wetenschappelijk Instituut Volksgezondheid , BE (Public Organisation)
The partners will meet with the user committee at least once a year.
