Databases available to researchers in the CTHB and the TPCP programmes at FABI
There are currently three major collections with associated databases within the Centre of Tree Health Biotechnology (CTHB). These are the literature and culture collections and the DNA
database. The Literature Collection is a collection of all the literature that has ever been cited in theses and publications produced in the Tree Protection Co-Operative Programme
(TPCP). It consists of more or less 16000 articles, all-dealing with pests and diseases of trees with a focus on Plantation species and is connected to a searchable computer database that
serves a reference collection for students in the TPCP and the Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI). This collection will now be expanded to cover pests and diseases
of indigenous South African trees. In line with literature databases internationally many of the articles in this database are also available in pdf format. The articles published by a
number of project leaders are now also available in pdf format. In the long term it is anticipated that the entire database will be backed up in pdf format. This database thus forms an
essential resource for students in the CTHB and will do so for an ever increasing number of our collaborators.
All research in TPCP and therefore the CTHB is reliant on the Culture Collection, which is housed in FABI I in a special cold room dedicated to the collection. The excess of 22000 cultures originates from plant and insect associations from all over the world and in recent years an average of 3000 cultures were deposited annually. It is probably the largest collection of its kind in Africa. Each culture is represented in a computerized database containing all available information such as area of origin, collector’s name, host etc. This collection contains some important reference cultures for students in the CTHB. In addition the collection will be expanded to house cultures isolated from projects in the CTHB and the Centre for Applied Mycological Studies (CAMS) led by Dr Gert Marais, a member of the CTHB team. It is anticipated that this collection will become an important repository of the fungal biodiversity in South Africa.
The most recent collection is the Sequencing Database. This has been initiated as one of the more exciting developments associated with the start of the CTHB. This Database will have a three-fold function. It will serve as an archive for DNA sequencing data produced by research in the CTBH and the TPCP, into which sequences will be deposited on a regular basis. It will therefore continually expand as the Centre and TPCP grow. In addition this sequence bank will serve as a reference collection for further research and as backup for data that is pertinent to genomic projects. The sequencing Database will contain information on each sequence (genus, species, isolate, collection number etc) as well as links to the relevant publication.
In addition to these three main collections there are smaller collections such as the Thesis, Book, Video, Photograph and Slide collections. These are all indispensable to the functioning of both the TPCP and the CTHB. They serve as an essential record of research activities within both programmes as well as being important resources for these activities.
All research in TPCP and therefore the CTHB is reliant on the Culture Collection, which is housed in FABI I in a special cold room dedicated to the collection. The excess of 22000 cultures originates from plant and insect associations from all over the world and in recent years an average of 3000 cultures were deposited annually. It is probably the largest collection of its kind in Africa. Each culture is represented in a computerized database containing all available information such as area of origin, collector’s name, host etc. This collection contains some important reference cultures for students in the CTHB. In addition the collection will be expanded to house cultures isolated from projects in the CTHB and the Centre for Applied Mycological Studies (CAMS) led by Dr Gert Marais, a member of the CTHB team. It is anticipated that this collection will become an important repository of the fungal biodiversity in South Africa.
The most recent collection is the Sequencing Database. This has been initiated as one of the more exciting developments associated with the start of the CTHB. This Database will have a three-fold function. It will serve as an archive for DNA sequencing data produced by research in the CTBH and the TPCP, into which sequences will be deposited on a regular basis. It will therefore continually expand as the Centre and TPCP grow. In addition this sequence bank will serve as a reference collection for further research and as backup for data that is pertinent to genomic projects. The sequencing Database will contain information on each sequence (genus, species, isolate, collection number etc) as well as links to the relevant publication.
In addition to these three main collections there are smaller collections such as the Thesis, Book, Video, Photograph and Slide collections. These are all indispensable to the functioning of both the TPCP and the CTHB. They serve as an essential record of research activities within both programmes as well as being important resources for these activities.
