KOPRI BioDB: A database to serve information of polar biodiversity and bioresources

Abstract

Biodiversity information and bio-resources collected from polar areas are invaluable resources that were acquired by expensive and time-consuming processes. To make information and bio-resources more useful, it is very important to share them in science community and in public. In order to fulfill the tasks efficiently, database linked to the samples, strains and other materials should be constructed. 'KOPRI BioDB' was constructed to make it easy to exchange information with Joint Committee on Antarctic Data Management (JCADM), Ocean Biogeographic Information System (OBIS), Global Biodiversity Inforamtion Facility (GBIF), and Korean Biodiversity Information Facility (KBIF). The database contains information for the environmental parameters, geographical origin, taxonomy, and physiological characteristics such as optimal media, growth temperature, and production of enzymes. The database was designed to upload and download data by Excel format. Searching for microbial strains using various keywords such as environmental parameters, geography, taxonomy, and physiology are available. The database will be available in public next year after examining the stability and reliability of the database and server system.