Culture collections of human pathogenic bacteria are maintained by two universities in Gifu and Osaka, Japan. Their activities are supported by the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) under the National Bioresource Project (NBRP¹). The purpose of this project is to collect, preserve, and provide bioresources, which are basic materials for life sciences research and to upgrade the bioresources responding to scientific demands of the present age by adding higher values through developing preservation technology, genome analysis, and others. The roles of culture collections in disasters are discussed in this short report. 1. http://www.nbrp.jp/

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