Gene bank

A gene bank is a type of biorepository that serves to preserve the genetic information of organisms.

Gene banks are often used for storing the genetic material of species that are endangered or close to extinction.

[1][2] The database of the largest gene banks in the world can be queried via a common website, Genesys.

[3] The largest seed bank in the world is the Millennium Seed Bank housed at the Wellcome Trust Millennium Building (WTMB), located in the grounds of Wakehurst Place in West Sussex, near London.

[4] In this technique, buds, protocorm and meristematic cells are preserved through particular light and temperature arrangements in a nutrient medium, which is either a gel or in liquid form.

The National Seed Storage Lab in Fort Collins, Colorado currently uses this technique to store pollen.

[11][12] Ideal levels of moisture content to be allowed in the pollen depends on the type of plant.

Field gene banks are vulnerable to natural disasters, pests and disease.

As such, they are typically used as a method of last resort if a species cannot be preserved via normal means, such as if it didn't produce seeds.