The State Microbial Depository Center (also known as the Republic Center for Deposition of Microorganisms or
RCDM) hosts Armenia's National Culture Collection of
non-pathogenic microorganisms. The institution's task is to collect, study, and
maintain microbial strains of scientific and industrial importance.
The Center is considered the basis for the Center of National Biological Resources, a collection of plant and animal
tissues and cells. Presently, the Center represents the scientific potential of
Armenia in basic and applied microbiology.
The Center currently holds around
10,000 strains of bacteria, fungi, yeasts and streptomycetes.
The majority of the organisms are those that have been isolated, identified,
and studied for the first time in Armenia. The strains are stored in nutrient
media, under
mineral oil, and in liquid nitrogen.
There are facilities and pilot-scale installations for process-engineering and
technological developments.
The Center maintains a vast
collection of well-characterized entomopa-thogenic
bacilli (around 3000 strains), isolated from specimens all over the world. The
bacilli are of critical importance for production of efficient mixtures for
insect control. There is a large collection of original strains of yeast,
lactic-acid bacteria and other microorganisms, which could be utilized for
production of food, animal food, and other products.
The Collection includes a number of
well-defined extremophilic organisms that have
considerable biotechnological potential and practical application for
microbiological transformations and the production of various biologically
active substances. Special attention is paid to enzymatic characteristics of
strains with emphasis on their use in biocatalytic
reactions. The Biocatalytic Specialized Data Bank is
used for this task.
The research activity of the Center
includes the screening and identification of new isolates and the development
of methods for long-term maintenance and conservation of their industrially
valuable properties. The Center is actively engaged in realization of national
programs in biotechnology in Armenia, particularly bioleaching of copper
and other metals. The Center is the successor to a long-term R&D program
that worked on the development of an integrated evaluation of microbial
deterioration/degradation of synthetic polymers and prediction of their biostability. The R&D dealt with space microbiology and
microbiological treatment and utilization of wastes.
RCDM's head, Dr. Evrik
G. Afrikian has extensive experience in the field of
microbiology both at home and abroad. He is a member of the National Academy of
Sciences. In the past, Dr. Afrikian conducted
research at the Pasteur Institute in Paris, at the Osaka Protein Research
Institute in Japan, and in several scientific
laboratories in Canada and the US.
Currently, RCDM is looking for
American partners that would be interested in collaborative development of
microbiological projects.
Address:
378510, Abovyan City,
Republic of Armenia
Phone/fax: (37422)
23240;
e-mail: Microbio@pnas.sci.am
or afrikian2002@yahoo.com
Web site: www.rcdm.am
