Unique Canadian fungus ‘bank’ saved by family foundation
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A unique collection of microscopic fungi used for Canadian medicine and biodiversity research has been saved from being shipped overseas.
The UAMH Center for Global Microfungal Biodiversity has received a $1 million donation from the Weston Family Foundation, allowing it to remain in Canada for Canadian use.
““This unique biobank has the potential to fuel medical discovery, public health preparedness and innovation for generations to come,” the Weston Family Foundation said in a statement Wednesday. “As a foundation committed to investing in innovation and learning, the Weston Family Foundation felt it had a responsibility to step in where the stakes are long-term and the benefits are shared by all.”
University of Winnipeg researcher Ayush Kumar, who has used the specimens in the search for new antibiotics and has contributed specimens to the collection over the past 10 years, said he was “extremely excited” that this “tremendous resource” is staying in Canada.
He said he was glad to see that Canadian foundations were taking an interest in saving it and supporting the science. “That’s also a very exciting part of it,” he said.
James Scott, a University of Toronto professor and director of the Center for Fungal Biodiversity, said he was “really shocked” when he was told about the donation.
He estimates this will provide bridge funding for about five years, allowing the center to come up with a sustainable plan to be here for the long term. Since receiving the news, the University of Toronto has been committed to helping secure and develop the facility, he said.
Why do Canadian scientists need a biobank?
This collection – the largest of its kind in the Western Hemisphere – includes approximately 12,000 specimens of 3,200 species from around the world that were available to Canadian researchers and companies.
They include many fungi that cause diseases in humans and animals that must be studied to discover new drugs and cures, or to save threatened species. Some are emerging or becoming more prevalent due to climate change.
Kumar said that fungi are an important potential source of new antibiotics, because they are “some of the best chemists that are out there.”
Mary Burby is Professor Emeritus of Botany at the University of British Columbia, who has deposited specimens in the biobank – which turned out to be a new fungal species. She says making such samples available to other researchers is the only way to ensure that scientific results can be reproduced or replicated.
Barbee says she was “delighted” by the news that the collection had been saved. “It’s really difficult to keep cultural collections going. There aren’t that many in the world,” he said. “And I was really worried about that.”
About two-thirds of the strains in the collection are unique in the world. Burbee said that if researchers can no longer reach them, their research may be delayed or not possible at all.
A University of Toronto collection of living fungi, long used in the development of life-saving medical breakthroughs like penicillin, may be closing due to lack of funding. Scientists across Canada are concerned that its loss could complicate the development of new drugs.
Collection Funding ends in 2024And Scott realized he couldn’t keep it going much longer with his own money. They began looking for a fungal biobank elsewhere in the world that could absorb the collection so it would not go to waste.
“The challenge,” he said, “is that once you ship these materials out of the country, it can be hard to get them back.”
Many international regulations govern the movement of threatened or rare species across borders, meaning that it will be difficult or impossible for many Canadian researchers to gain access to them from another country. “This is a deep loss for Canadian science,” Scott said.
How was the solution found?
But after CBC News Ran a story about the biobank’s troublesSome foundations contacted Scott asking for more information.
After learning more, the Weston Family Foundation, which prioritizes projects related to healthy aging and healthy ecosystems, invited the biobank to apply for a grant. It was finalized in January.
Scott said that in the process, the biobank has been encouraged to promote itself to a broader group of researchers, institutions and companies who might find its samples useful — something it hesitated to do when its future was uncertain.
He said biobanks are one of the only ways for researchers to access samples of microorganisms that can’t just be ordered from online stores, like chemicals and other scientific supplies.
The Center for Global Microfungal Biodiversity plans to work on cataloging its specimens online and making them more accessible, in the hopes that it can earn more from user fees.
It is also considering raising an endowed fund that could cover the rest of its costs.
