The Culture Collection of Microorganisms from Extreme Environments (CCMEE) was created in 1999 by the consolidation of the collections of Dr. E. Imre Friedmann of Florida State University and Dr. Richard Castenholz of the University of Oregon.
The newly-formed CCMEE contains cultures from all over the world, including Antarctica, Israel, Asia, Africa, New Zealand and North America. The majority of cultures were collected from extreme environments such as hot and cold deserts, hypersaline waters, hot springs, acidic waters, and habitats exposed to high solar irradiance. The collection represents many years of the combined work of Imre and Roseli Friedmann, Richard Castenholz and innumerable students. The cultures are a unique and irreplaceable resource for genetic, phylogenetic, and physiological studies.
The CCMEE is funded by a grant from the NASA-Ames Research Center and is a part of the NASA Astrobiology Institute. It is a member of the United States Federation for Culture Collections.
For more information, please visit the CCMEE website. The site includes a searchable database of the cultures, media recipes used and information on how to obtain cultures.
