GIUV2023-544
Plant conservation can be carried out in the natural environment where they live (in situ conservation, e.g. natural parks) or outside their natural environment (ex situ conservation, e.g. botanical gardens, germplasm banks). In ex situ conservation, conventional seed banks (which store dried seeds at low temperatures, generally -20ºC) are the most widespread option, due to their relatively low technical demand and cost, and the potential to apply them to a large number of species. However, it has been estimated that between 20-60% of plant species cannot be stored long-term in seed banks, due to (1) the absence of seeds to store, (2) the intolerance of the seeds to drying and/or low temperatures, (3) the short longevity of the seeds or (4) the inability to propagate them if it is not done through in vitro cultivation platforms. This group of plants is known as "exceptional plant species", and requires cryobiotechnology for long-term conservation. Cryobiotechnology is the use of modern technologies to understand the response of biological systems to low-temperature environments, whether natural or imposed, which leads to the production of knowledge, goods, and services, including...Plant conservation can be carried out in the natural environment where they live (in situ conservation, e.g. natural parks) or outside their natural environment (ex situ conservation, e.g. botanical gardens, germplasm banks). In ex situ conservation, conventional seed banks (which store dried seeds at low temperatures, generally -20ºC) are the most widespread option, due to their relatively low technical demand and cost, and the potential to apply them to a large number of species. However, it has been estimated that between 20-60% of plant species cannot be stored long-term in seed banks, due to (1) the absence of seeds to store, (2) the intolerance of the seeds to drying and/or low temperatures, (3) the short longevity of the seeds or (4) the inability to propagate them if it is not done through in vitro cultivation platforms. This group of plants is known as "exceptional plant species", and requires cryobiotechnology for long-term conservation. Cryobiotechnology is the use of modern technologies to understand the response of biological systems to low-temperature environments, whether natural or imposed, which leads to the production of knowledge, goods, and services, including the cryopreservation of organisms, cells and tissues for use in industry, agriculture, medicine and conservation. Knowledge of botany, ecology, evolution and omics are combined to reveal the centres and networks that regulate stress tolerance and in vitro tissue regeneration and growth. In addition, understanding the structural stability of plant cell systems, from isolated cells to complex tissues, improves as we access powerful biophysical and physicochemical techniques. Plant cryopreservation is the storage of biological material at ultra-low temperature, usually that given by liquid nitrogen (-196 °C), and is the implementation of the knowledge acquired in the broad discipline of cryobiotechnology. Within this context, CRYOCONEX aims to reveal the fundamental bases of tolerance to stress exerted by desiccation and low temperatures on seeds of different physiologies and other plant propagules (spores, pollen, cauline buds, gametophytes), particularly in relation to their long-term conservation (including cryopreservation). In addition, at CRYOCONEX we are interested in the variation in longevity in plant propagules, from fern spores as a single-cell model to more complex systems. These studies often require the use of structural and biophysical approaches. This multidisciplinary and unique approach in seed biology makes CRYOCONEX a world leader.
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- Revelar las bases fundamentales de la tolerancia al estres ejercido por la desecacion y las bajas temperaturas en semillas y propagulos vegetales
- Estudiar la variacion de la longevidad en propagulos de plantas, desde esporas de helechos como modelo unicelular hasta sistemas mas complejos
- Mejorar la capacidad de conservacion a largo plazo (incluyendo la crio-preservacion) de los bancos de germoplasma
- Variation and evolution of desiccation and freezing tolerance and longevity in plant propagules..Our goal is to quantify the variances in desiccation and freeze tolerance and longevity in plant propagules to understand their fundamental basis and how these traits may have evolved during land colonisation, from bryophytes to embryophytes.
- Dry and frozen architecture of plant propagules..The aim is to study the structural and physicochemical bases that modulate physiological responses that result in aging and the tolerance of plant propagules to dessication and/or sub-zero temperatures. For this purpose, we use techniques such as cryo-microscopy, calorimetry and rheology.
- Cryopreservation of desiccation and chilling sensitive plant propagules.The aim is to research and develop cryopreservation protocols for plant propagules of exceptional species, that is, those sensitive to desiccation and low temperatures that cannot be stored in conventional seed banks.
- Optimization of long-term ex situ conservation of plant genetic resources.This line of applied research uses the knowledge gained from the other lines of research to suggest changes that will result in the optimisation of current methods for the long-term ex situ conservation of plant genetic resources.
| Name | Nature of participation | Entity | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| DANIEL BALLESTEROS BARGUES | Director | Universitat de València |
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- semillas; esporas; polen; helechos; gimnospermas; angiospermas; briofitos; desecado; envejecimiento
- formación de hielo; cristalización de lípidos; transición vítrea; movilidad molecular; desecado; envejecimiento
- nitrógeno líquido; vitrificación; crioprotección; hielo
- bancos de semillas; germoplasma; criobancos; biorrepositorios; conservación ex situ; GSPC; CBD
