Biodiversity Biobanks
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Stay up to date with Biodiversity Biobanks South Africa.
Meet The Member | Growth Takes Time: Sydney Ramulifho Saves Plants For Future Generations
Growth Takes Time: Sydney Ramulifho Saves Plants For Future Generations “Working with plants and conservation has taught me that success does not happen overnight. Growth takes time. And every small effort, whether collecting samples, preserving ...
Biobanking News | Establishing a National Soil Biobank to Advance Agricultural Research in South Africa
Doing The Groundwork: Establishing a National Soil Biobank in South Africa The South African research landscape has taken a significant step forward with the establishment of a comprehensive soil sample database and biobanking system, designed ...
Meet The Member: Mosa Kekana – Working To Keep The World Wild
Meet The Member: Mosa Kekana – Working To Keep The World Wild Growing up, Mosa Kekana always wanted a career involving animals. So what could be a better fit than working at the SANParks Veterinary ...
Biobanking News | Barcode of Wildlife Project Voucher Specimen Sampling (BoWP) Training Held at SANBI National Zoological Garden
Biobanking News | Barcode of Wildlife Project Voucher Specimen Sampling (BoWP) Training Held at SANBI National Zoological Garden Wildlife crime is a global issue, and South Africa, with its extremely rich biodiversity, remains a key ...
Meet the Member: Sibahle Gumede – Planting Seeds Of Knowledge
Meet the Member: Sibahle Gumede - Planting Seeds Of Knowledge Plant species worldwide are under threat of extinction as a result of habitat loss, invasive alien plants, over-collection and more - and South Africa is ...
Biobanking News | Department Of Agriculture National Genebank Strengthens Farmers With Seed Systems Knowledge
Biobanking News | Department Of Agriculture National Genebank Strengthens Farmers With Seed Systems Knowledge Community seed banks provide farmers with an opportunity to actively participate in research initiatives, thereby empowering them and strengthening their control ...
Young Biobanking Superstars: We Want YOU
Call For Stories: Youth Month 2026 - Young Biobanking Superstars In June, South Africa will celebrate Youth Month - a very special time for this country, and for all of us. It’s been 50 years ...
Why Biobanks Matter | Protecting Plants, Promoting A Better Life
Why Biobanks Matter: Protecting Plants & Promoting A Better Life When it comes to people, plants matter. Most of the calories we eat come, directly or indirectly, from plants. Many of the medicines we use ...
The National Plant Genetic Resources Centre: Supporting Small Farmers & South Africa’s Food Security
The National Plant Genetic Resources Centre: Supporting Small Farmers & South Africa's Food Security Human civilization as we know it is dependent on agriculture. Most of the food calories we consume come, directly or indirectly, ...
How Biobanking Works In Africa – And How To Do It Better (A Pan-African Pilot Study)
Reading List | How Biobanking Works In Africa - And How To Do It Better (A Pan-African Pilot Study) Biobanks offer a chance to investigate Africa’s rich genetic diversity and tackle the continent’s health and ...
Biobanking News: Stephanie Lawrence Represents IMBM For International eDNA Training
Biobanking News: Stephanie Lawrence Represents IMBM For International eDNA Training In November 2025, Stephanie Lawrence was one of only six South Africans selected to attend the prestigious BioDATA Advanced Course at the Biological Station in ...
Job Opportunity: Director – Durban Natural Science Museum
Job Opportunity: Director - Durban Natural Science Museum The Durban Natural Science Museum (DNSM) is a small museum with a big mission: to acquire and disseminate knowledge about the Earth, its history, and life on ...
Biobanking News: SAIAB’s DIPLOMICS Partnership Expands Biobanking Potential
A Partnership for the Genomics Era: Expanding Biobank Potential Through DIPLOMICS Collaboration As genomic technologies evolve, the scientific community increasingly requires DNA of far higher quality, sometimes beyond what traditional preservation methods were originally designed ...
Biobanking News: New Curatorial Appointments at the Durban Natural Science Museum
Biobanking News: New Curatorial Appointments at the Durban Natural Science Museum The Durban Natural Science Museum (DNSM) is delighted to welcome two new curators to its Collections and Research team: Dr Dina Fagir, Curator of ...
Biobanking News: UFS Researchers Find South African Brown Locusts Harbor Drug-Resistant Yeast
Environmental Reservoir Found: South African Brown Locusts Harbor Drug-Resistant Yeast In a groundbreaking study that sheds light on the habitat of the deadly, drug-resistant yeast Candidozyma (Candida) auris, researchers from the University of the Free ...
BBSA Updates: Share Your Biodiversity Biobanking Stories
BBSA Updates: Share Your Biodiversity Biobanking Stories Happy new year, BBSA Community - and welcome back! We’re grateful for your continued commitment to biodiversity biobanking excellence, and to preserving, protecting and promoting biobanks to benefit ...
Seeding The Future: How the SANBI Wild Plant Seedbank Is Saving SA’s Botanical Splendour
Seeding The Future: How the SANBI Wild Plant Seedbank Is Saving SA’s Botanical Splendour There are moments when I am overwhelmed by the sheer, unrepeatable genius of our natural world, particularly in the succulent Karoo. ...
Biobanks Africa 2025: In Case You Missed It
Recordings Available: Biobanks Africa 2025 You might not have heard (where have you been?)...but this year saw the South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI) and the Biodiversity Biobanks South Africa (BBSA) hosting the biggest biobanking ...
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What are biodiversity biobanks?
Biodiversity biobanks are repositories of biologically relevant resources, including reproductive tissues such as seeds, eggs and sperm, other tissues including blood, DNA extracts, microbial cultures (active and dormant), and environmental samples containing biological communities….















