Skip to main content
ARS Home » Midwest Area » Ames, Iowa » Plant Introduction Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #372067
Research Project: Plant Genetic Resource Management and Information System Development

Location: Plant Introduction Research

Title: Managing and distributing maize diversity: The NPGS maize collection in Ames, IA

Author
item Bernau, Vivian
item Millard, Mark
item Gardner, Candice

Submitted to: Maize Genetics Conference Abstracts
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/12/2020
Publication Date: 3/12/2020
Citation: Bernau, V.M., Millard, M.J., Gardner, C.A. 2020. Managing and distributing maize diversity: The NPGS maize collection in Ames, IA [abstract]. Maize Genetics Conference Abstracts. Poster No. 12.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: In addition to the Maize Genetic Stocks collection held in Urbana, IL, the USDA National Plant Germplasm System (NPGS) includes a collection of more than 20,000 accessions of cultivated temperate- and tropical-adapted maize and wild relative genetic resources from around the world. This collection is held at the North Central Regional Plant Introduction Station (NCRPIS) in Ames, Iowa and is backed up in Fort Collins, Colorado. Approximately 75% of the collection (14,922 accessions) is available for distribution. Seed viability is monitored on a 10-15 year cycle. When viability drops below 50%, or if the kernel inventory falls below 1000 seeds, an accession becomes unavailable for distribution until it can be regenerated. Temperate-adapted material is typically regenerated in Ames, Iowa. Nurseries provided by collaborators and contractors in the continental US, Saint Croix, Puerto Rico, and Mexico are used to regenerate non-temperate material from unique environments. Seed regeneration is costly and is carefully managed to ensure that genetic integrity preserved. It is also an opportunity to gather observations. GRIN-Global, the germplasm database of the NPGS, currently holds 301,785 trait observations on 16,882 accessions, and 14,981 ear, kernel, and cob images on 6,307 accessions, in addition to accession passport and provenance data. Germplasm requests can be made through the NPGS GRIN-Global public website: https://npgsweb.ars-grin.gov/gringlobal/search.aspx. In 2019, NCRPIS distributed more than 20,000 packets of maize to requestors around the world.