Implementation of the Nagoya Protocol within the Collection of Institut Pasteur

The focus of the EU regulations on the Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit-Sharing leaves the control of access to genetic resources up to each member state. France has chosen to control access and is going to put in place regulations for it. All the materials received should have specific documentation regarding the accession of genetic resources, where there is a National Authority to issue them. The European commission will maintain a list of biological collections with registered status proposed by each country. The member states are responsible for considering inclusion and verification of these collections. In recent years, the Collection of Institut Pasteur (CIP) staff has expressed concern over how to interact with the implementation of the Nagoya Protocol in the collection but also at the national level with the aim that the CIP will be a registered collection. The advantage of accessing resources from a registered collection is that users of genetic resources will be considered as having exercised ‘due diligence’ if they source their genetic resources from these collections. This could facilitate the process for scientists when applying for research funding. The CIP organized the accession of new deposits and the distribution of micro-organisms in connection with it.