Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden

The Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden will conduct research to improve the conservation of threatened species of oak trees. Seeds from exceptional species, which include oaks, are not able to withstand storage in seed banks, but cultures of their stem cells and other tissues can be stored in liquid nitrogen in cryobanks. Obtaining these cultures can be time-consuming, with low levels of success. Research will focus on understanding the factors involved in successfully establishing cultures to create cryobanked collections of six threatened oak species. The project includes the training of a post-doc, a graduate student, and interns, and the creation of new digital tools to assist future research on oaks and other threatened species. By improving the process of culture initiation for the cryobanking of oaks, the conservation of exceptional plants may become more efficient and scalable in the future.