Deposit in the open collection, step-by-step

The DSMZ only accepts biological material which can be handled under containment level 1 and 2. Highly pathogenic microorganisms of Risk Group 3 and 4 are not treated by the DSMZ. Risk Groups as defined by the European Parliament Directive 2000/54/EC on the protection of workers from risks related to exposure to biological agents at work. OJ No. L262, pp. 21-45 of 18.09.2000.

  1. Before shipping, you must take into account the Convention on Biological Diversity and The Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit-sharing. More details...
  2. Fill in the Accession Form for microorganims or use the Accession Form for phages and send it.
  3. Wait for response. Your curator will contact you as soon as possible.
  4. Please prepare the shipment according to these instructions. A printed and signed version of the accession form must be included in the package that contains the strain.
  5. Once preservation and all quality checks are done we will send you the DSM accession number. Please take into account that for some strains this may take a while.
  6. We will send a DSMZ culture of your strain back to you with the request to check and confirm the identity of the culture.
  7. Only after receipt of your confirmation we will issue the Certificate of Availability for prospective type strains.

All deposits in the open collection will be handled confidentially until the DSM number, taxonomic name or strain designation is published in a journal or the depositor indicates that the strain may be released. However, if neither the name, DSMZ number, nor strain designation has been published within 4 years the DSMZ reserves the right to release the strain.