A grant has been awarded to the University of Texas at Austin under the direction of Dr. Jerry J. Brand to support the UTEX Culture Collection of Algae, a research and teaching resource of more than 2,600 strains of algae and cyanobacteria. The collection provides cultures to users for researchers in the United States and worldwide. More than 600 new strains have been accessioned into the collection in the past five years. A frequently updated web page provides a means for ordering algae, as well as information on the biology and culture of these organisms. UTEX has responded to users' requests to provide high-resolution digital images. The Algal Collection also provides bulk volumes of culture media, and a DNA extracting service at a nominal cost. An increasing number of strains are cryopreserved, a method of preservation that requires less labor and enhanced long-term accessibility to the cultures. The collection is cited in hundreds of peer reviewed articles each year, in projects ranging from algae as animal and human food supplements, pharmaceuticals, biofuels, and other applications. The award will support the personnel to maintain the UTEX collection, including student workers who will be trained in algal biology. An annual "algae in water supplies" workshop is presented to employees of municipal water-quality laboratories in Texas as part of educational activities.
Microscopic forms of algae have been critical to life on Earth for hundreds of millions of years. Since the mid-20th century thousands of scientists and others throughout the world have been using algae microalgae for basic and applied research, educational purposes, and technology development. Interest has intensified recently since microalgae are now widely recognized as a potential sustainable source of biofuels that can replace fossil fuels, and as a feedstock for numerous higher-value products. The Culture Collection of Algae at the University of Texas at Austin (widely known among algae researchers as UTEX) is recognized internationally as one of the most important sources for living algae and for information pertaining to microalgae culturing. Over the last 5 years NSF support has allowed UTEX to facilitate thousands of research projects throughout the U.S. During this time period approximately 13,500 cultures of living algae have been sent at modest cost to academic scientists, to high school and college students, to national laboratory researchers, and to those who wish to develop algae for commercial purposes. UTEX personnel collectively spend an average of ~30 hrs./week through personal dialog, telephone conversations and e-mail correspondence, assisting students and professionals who wish to learn to culture algae. A publicly accessible UTEX web site, <www.utex.org>, updated weekly, contains data pertaining to UTEX strains and information pertaining to the culturing of algae. Five years ago UTEX initiated a highly structured hands-on 2-day workshop for advanced students and professionals who wanted to learn algal culturing methodologies. Approximately 6 - 10 workshops are now held per year and each workshop can accommodate up to twelve persons. Over 150 individuals (mostly professional scientists and engineers) from four continents completed this training during 2008 – 2012. UTEX is involved in many outreach activities. UTEX personnel consult with secondary school teachers and students throughout the US about their science-fair and classroom projects. UTEX hosts visitors every year who come for extended periods of time to learn how to manage algal cultures. For example, in 2012 three Ph.D.-level professionals, including a community-college senior biotechnology instructor, a diatom expert, and a senior scientist from India, each spent several months learning culturing techniques from UTEX staff and sharing their knowledge of algae. Internal projects initiated during the last 3 years, such as "barcoding" UTEX algae by determining specific DNA sequence information, is greatly enhancing the value of UTEX to the user community. UTEX participates in many local educational and outreach activities. During 2012 nearly 200 cultures were provided at no cost to teachers in local institutions for general instruction and science projects. UTEX provides demonstrations in local primary-school classes every year. UTEX actively participates in the annual "Parents day", when thousands of family members of University student visit campus, by showcasing the importance of the many undergraduate students who work in the Collection and become trained in diverse areas of science. UTEX also participates in the annual university-wide "Explore UT" day, when tens of thousands of visitors (especially primary school children from underserved school districts) learn the importance of education. Throughout Explore UT day UTEX personnel, including undergraduate students, provide microscope demonstrations, brief presentations and other activities that encourage youth to become engaged in science. In addition to these NSF-supported service activities, UTEX personnel conduct research projects such as studies of economical systems for culturing algae in large (pilot-scale) volumes, methods for freezing algae such that they remain alive and healthy after thawed, and genetic characterization of functions of certain cyanobacteria (bacteria-like microalgae).
