General FAQs

General FAQs

What does the prefix 'LB' mean in the UTEX catalog number (ex. LB 572)?
The 'LB' prefix indicates it is a xenic culture maintained in liquid media.
Wed, Jun 6, 2018 at 12:05 PM
What does the prefix 'B' mean in the UTEX catalog number (ex. UTEX B 23)?
The 'B' prefix indicates the strain is a xenic culture maintained on an agar slant.
Wed, Jun 6, 2018 at 12:06 PM
What does it mean if there is not a prefix in the UTEX catalog number (ex. UTEX 2714)??
A UTEX catalog number that does not contain a prefix indicates it is an axenic culture maintained on an agar slant. UTEX designates a culture as axenic bas...
Wed, Jun 6, 2018 at 12:12 PM
I cannot find a culture in your Collection, do you know where else I could find the strain?
You can try using the "search by strain" feature of the World Federation for Culture Collections (WFCC) website, to see what other Culture Collect...
Wed, Jun 6, 2018 at 8:43 AM
What is a toxic strain?
Toxic strains are those that produce toxic compounds (e.g. saxitoxins, microcystins, anatoxins, nodularins). There are many strains of algae that produce t...
Thu, Feb 2, 2017 at 12:23 PM
Which strains at UTEX produce toxins?
UTEX has several strains that were reported as toxin producers at the time of deposition. However, toxin production, gas vacuole formation, and growth as c...
Fri, May 18, 2018 at 9:22 AM
Why is the algae name sometimes different than what other places call it?
The algae are a very diverse group of organisms and taxonomic designations are constantly undergoing revisions. As a result, genus or species designations ...
Thu, Feb 2, 2017 at 12:24 PM
I have an algal strain that I would like to confirm the identity of. Do you offer strain identification?
In some instances, UTEX can use microscopy to identify algal strains to the genus level. However, this is generally not possible if dealing with strains lac...
Wed, Oct 14, 2020 at 10:48 AM
How do I properly dispose of the algal cultures?
Please protect our environment by observing proper precautions when disposing algal cultures. UTEX cultures may be discarded safely only after sterilization...
Thu, Feb 2, 2017 at 12:29 PM
Do any UTEX cyanobacteria strains produce Paralytic Shellfish Toxin (PST)?
To our knowledge, none of our cyanobacteria strains produce PSTs.
Fri, Oct 6, 2017 at 3:30 PM