Portable search engine for registered crop germplasm: a new concept for enhancing access to information on plant genetic resources

Abstract

The National Bureau of Plant genetic Resources (NBPGR), New Delhi carries out the registration of unique crop germplasm in order to protect the intrinsic intellectual property as well as to facilitate greater utilization of germplasm in crop improvement programmes. It is therefore imperative to enhance access to information on registered crop germplasm. Here, we present a concept of a search engine that can suffice dual functions of a Web-based and portable search application. The concept entails converting raw data through a series of transformations from a Microsoft-Excel to eXtensible Markup Language (XML) data format. XML data initialized on compatible Web browsers are then queried for the search term based on a looping regular expression matching. The results are then loaded onto the browser in a tabulated output. The concept is implemented in the form of ‘Inventory of Registered Crop Germplasm’ on the Web as well as on a portable memory (compact disk or flash drive). The portable search engine works with minimal hardware and software requirements to enable its widespread utility to ensure greater access to information on registered crop germplasm. The portable search engine can be obtained from the NBPGR, New Delhi and the Web-based search engine can be accessed at http://www.nbpgr.ernet.in/IRCG/index.htm.