Author : Jackson, Michael

Summary : Abstract: Ex citu conservation in genebanks is a safe and cost-efficient method of preserving the genetic diversity of crops and their wild relatives, particularly for species whose seeds can tolerate desiccation and storage at low temperature. Biotechnology is particularly useful for in vitro culture, cryopreservation , and disease elimination in vegetatively propagated crops. The use of molecular markers to study genetic diversity, identify duplicate accessions, and increase utilization by more efficient screening of germplasm are recent developments. Management of biotechnology in a genebank depends on the value of biotechnology over other approaches, the cost of investment, the trade-offs in not using biotechnology, and the resource allocation prioritization over all genebank activities and operations. The principal applications of biotechnology in the International Rice Genebank of the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) are in vitro culture of seedlings and the study of genetic diversity using a range of molecular markers. Investment in biotechnology was made only after conservation operations pre se had been upgraded.