Safeguarding Genetic Resources of Aquatic Biomedical Models

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Project Summary/Abstract: The activities at the Aquatic Germplasm and Genetic Resources Center (AGGRC) have expanded considerably over the past 5 years with us now addressing repository development for all five NIH-funded aquatic stock centers. Reliable availability of liquid nitrogen is essential to most of that work. Baton Rouge has a strong industrial base, and liquid nitrogen is available from local suppliers. However, delivery and on-site management have become increasingly problematic and are a growing constraint to our research, training, outreach, community support, and sample storage activities. We currently use more than 7,000 gallons of liquid nitrogen per year, delivered in the form of ~120 separate 230-liter low-pressure rolling dewars. We receive and exchange these with a vendor each week, but the deliveries cannot be relied upon to arrive when scheduled, and the tanks routinely arrive empty or broken. The vendors also deliver high-pressure tanks that can damage our equipment. This requires AGGRC personnel to be present when the delivery truck arrives to ensure things are done properly and that the doors are locked when the delivery truck leaves. Delivery is especially not reliable after hurricanes or other disruptive events. The bottom line is that the center has grown to the extent that we require an external bulk storage (3,000-L) liquid nitrogen tank that can be installed on an existing concrete pad that was built for that purpose. Moreover, switching to bulk delivery will reduce per-liter nitrogen cost by 28%. In addition, our primary sample processing instrument (Minitube, Quattro) that fills, seals, and labels cryopreservation straws is >10 years old and is losing reliability. This piece of equipment is also used to provide labeling of cryopreservation straws used by the stock centers and other research community members. We need to replace this equipment to continue to provide reliable services. For example, the printer unit has been replaced in newer models and the supplier will no longer service the old version. Replacement would reduce use of the existing instrument and allow us to extend its working lifetime for back-up and overflow operation. Thus, we have great need to upgrade our liquid nitrogen supply and use, and to replace an essential piece of equipment that is used daily. Each of these improvements is in direct response to our growth as a service center addressing community needs, and our increased interaction as a Hub with all five NIH-funded national aquatic stock centers. If funded, this supplement will substantially improve operations relative to the parent grant, and it will provide a sustained powerful benefit to the overall research community. In addition, these improvements will not require additional funding beyond the supplement, and they will in fact substantially reduce our costs for liquid nitrogen. This work can be completed within the current project year (entering Year 4), and it does not overlap with work funded in the parent award or through previous supplemental funding.