BOLD, the Barcode of Life Data Systems, is the central database of DNA barcoding research community. It is a web platform that supports the assembly, analysis, publication, and application of DNA barcodes. Its primary goals are to increase the volume, diversity and quality of barcode data, and to provide the analytical tools necessary to maximize the use of this information. BOLD is used by scientists, students, and industry in over 200 countries and is widely recognized as a critical resource in enabling the understanding and monitoring of our biological world. BOLD is a key technology resource for this project.
The International Barcode of Life project is a consortium of research institutions from 26 nations with a single focus - advance species identification through the use of DNA barcodes. The iBOL secretariat is hosted at the University of Guelph and is lead by Dr. Paul Hebert, the scientific visionary behind DNA Barcoding. This project is taking on a seemingly impossible challenge - catalogue ALL the species on the planet - a challenge that 250 years of scientific effort has not met. Progress from this project's global team over the past 10 years has shown that such a task could be completed in 20 years.
SAP SE (Systems, Applications & Products in Data Processing) is a German multinational software corporation that makes enterprise software to manage business operations and customer relations. SAP is headquartered in Walldorf, Baden-Württemberg, Germany, with regional offices in 130 countries. SAP has extensive logistics and design expertise in information and communications technology. They are a key informatics technology resource for this project.
DNA Genotek develops innovative products that support the collection and analysis of biological samples. They have expertise in the development of chemistry and protocols that preserve DNA and enable its rapid and accurate analysis. DNA Genotek products are marketed worldwide and support thousands of customers as they achieve breakthroughs in genomic research. DNA Genotek is headquartered in Ottawa, Canada, and is a key wet-lab technology partner.
LABORATORY PARTNERS
The Canadian Centre for DNA Barcoding (CCDB) is the world's premier facility for high-throughput DNA barcoding, with a capacity to analyze one million specimens per year and an active research and development division. Analytical services are provided in support of all stages of the DNA barcoding pipeline from tissue sampling and molecular analysis to data management. The CCDB is the primary analytical facility for the International Barcode of Life (iBOL) Project, the largest molecular biodiversity initiative ever undertaken.
The African Centre for DNA Barcoding is a division of the University of Johannesburg and an academic unit within the departments of Botany & Plant Biotechnology and Zoology, and is subjected to the governance rules and structures of the Faculty of Science. The mission of the African Centre for DNA Barcoding is to fill the knowledge gap and strengthen research frameworks for international, regional and inter-institutional co-operation in Africa, especially in the modern field of DNA technology for biodiversity science, such as DNA Barcoding.
ID-Gene LTD is a company committed to developing novel DNA-based tests for environmental bioassessment and biomonitoring. Its goal is to provide regulators and industry with solutions to protect the environment while ensuring a sustainable economical growth. They apply latest next-generation sequencing (NGS) technologies to detect indicator species and to provide complete biodiversity inventories, in all types of environmental samples (water, sediment, soil). They monitor real-time environmental changes by detecting only metabolically active organisms (eRNA), and longer term changes by analyzing DNA present in the environment (eDNA).