Dr. Dan Distel and his team have launched a non-profit marine genome bank at the Northeastern University Marine Science Center called the Ocean Genome Legacy Center. The OGL mission is to explore and preserve the wealth of information contained in the genomes (total DNA) of endangered, rare, unusual, and ecologically critical marine organisms and to make these primary materials available for researchers to access for future studies. So far, the OGL has amassed over 29,000 DNA samples that represent over 3,000 identified marine species. Often marine scientists spend a lifetime amassing a large number of samples and years of research notes, but what happens when they retire? Now they can donate the wealth of their collection to the OGL. The OGL doesn't just stop at the physical storage of genome samples in freezers. These DNA curators also collect the researcher's notes regarding each sample - dates, depths, locations, sample collection methods, etc. Any ambiguity leads the team back to the original researcher for clarification. This way when future researchers want to study or compare a similar sample, all the relevant context is available. Read more...