The Canadian Center for the Culture of Microorganisms (CCCM) is the only facility of its kind in Canada and is one of the most comprehensive in the world. The combined marine and freshwater algal collections consist of approximately 300 strains representing 14 algal classes. All of the major algal groups appearing in the marine phytoplankton are represented.
The major emphases are on local species of ecological and toxicological importance and on those that may be of importance in biotechnology. Currently, approximately 75% of the isolates are from British Columbia waters and the remainder are from tropical and other temperate regions. A unique feature of the CCCM is the inclusion of various species of oceanic microflagellates isolated from the northeast Pacific. The dinoflagellate collection is one of the largest in the world. The fungal collection contains hundreds of strains of fungi and yeast, many of which are unique to the CCCM.
The collections have been declared by the National Biotechnology Advisory Committee as being of “strategic value to Canadian Biotechnology” and of “unique scientific importance”
Contact Us
We are located at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver Campus. Our office is at the Biological Sciences Building.
Mailing Address:
Canadian Center for the Culture of Microorganisms
Department of Botany
6270 University Boulevard
Vancouver, BC Canada V6T 1Z4
Telephone: (604)822-4825
Important note: the CCCM is unable to return long-distance phone calls except on a COLLECT basis.
E-mail: Curator, Donna Dinh: cccm@mail.ubc.ca
