UMCC is the microbial collection of the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia (UNIMORE), dedicated to the preservation of “authenticated biological material”. UMCC offers a useful service for research, teaching, screening assay and biotechnological applications.
UMCC holds 2,700 strains including yeasts, lactic bacteria and acetic acid bacteria, isolated from different food and beverages matrices. These strains are exploited for the implementation and development of functional starter cultures for food and industrial fermentation processes. All the microbial cultures are maintained in collection by techniques that ensure long preservation and genetic stability. Quality controls which include viability, purity, authenticity and key features of microorganisms are periodically checked to confirm that they correspond to the original cultures deposited. The preserved strains are characterized by a polyphasic approach and all the information is carefully managed and monitored. A public database is available on line at http://umcc.bio-aware.com/.
The research group dedicated to UMCC has specific skills in the various scientific disciplines including microbiology, ecology, analytical chemistry, molecular biology and bioinformatics.
UMCC is a member of the European Culture Collections’ Organization (ECCO) and of the World Federation for Culture Collections (WFCC).
Key persons
- Prof. Paolo Giudici.
Founder of UMCC. - Dr Maria Gullo, UMCC Scientific Coordinator.
Acetic Acid Bacteria Specialist. Member of the General Assembly of MIRI-IT. - Dr Luciana De Vero, UMCC curator.
Member of the Scientific Committee of MIRRI-IT. - Dr Stefano Cassanelli, Molecular Biology Specialist.
Member of the Scientific Committee of MIRRI-IT. - Prof. Andrea Pulvirenti, Food Safety Specialist.
Member of the Scientific Committee OF MIRRI-IT. - Dr Ferdinando Di Maggio, International Research Office.
Member of the General Assembly of MIRRI-IT.
Relevant previous projects
- Development and management of a microbial collection of agro-food interest (Project granted by Cassa di Risparmio di Reggio Emilia, Fondazione Pietro Manodori, 2009-2010).
- MIRRI (Microbial Resource Research Infrastructure, EU project, VII Framework Programme, ESFRI Initiative, 2012-2015).
Description of significant infrastructure
Technical platforms of UMCC Group include basic and specialized facilities for microbiology and molecular biotechnology, laboratory fermentors, analytical equipments, and bioinformatics software including BioloMICS NET software (BioAware) for data management.