The EURISCO-EVA Information System is an innovative extension of the European Search Catalogue for Plant Genetic Resources (EURISCO), which is hosted at and maintained by the Leibniz Institute of Plant Genetics and Crop Plant Research (IPK) Gatersleben on behalf of the European Cooperative Programme for Plant Genetic Resources (ECPGR). This system facilitates standardized data collection, sharing and analysis for multi-site evaluations of different crops within the European Evaluation Network (EVA). EVA brings together breeding companies, research institutes and genebanks to evaluate crop diversity, identify breeding materials, and discover genetic markers for desirable traits in plant genetic resources conserved in European genebanks.
A new paper published in Genetic Resources highlights the main features of the EURISCO-EVA Information System. Currently, this database stores data from five crop networks – carrot, lettuce, pepper, maize, and wheat and barley. These datasets encompass over 500,000 data points across 4,845 crop accessions representing 17 species, gathered from 382 experiments conducted at 115 locations in 33 countries. Beyond phenotypic evaluation data, EURISCO-EVA integrates essential metadata, including accession passport data, trait definitions, trial methodologies, network partner information and genotyping experiments. This comprehensive approach ensures that researchers can access a wide range of interconnected data in one centralized system.
To respond to diverse user needs, EURISCO-EVA offers a user-friendly interface with multiple methods for retrieving and filtering data, supporting both general and advanced queries. Its scalable design allows the addition of new crop networks, such as the recently launched EVA Legumes network in 2024. Additionally, a demo network is being developed to provide the public and potential partners with access to the system's interface and features.
EURISCO-EVA prioritizes collaboration and interoperability, ensuring that data from various stakeholders can be seamlessly integrated and compared. By adhering to FAIR principles – Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable – it promotes high-quality, reproducible and collaborative research. Its standardization of data collection and analysis methods addresses one of the key challenges in the field: the fragmentation and lack of uniformity in crop evaluation data.
In summary, EURISCO-EVA is a powerful, user-friendly and scalable information system that centralizes and standardizes crop evaluation data. By promoting data uniformity and collaboration, EURISCO-EVA supports advanced research, breeding efforts and the sustainable use of plant genetic resources.
Read the paper: Kumar, S., Guzzon, F., Goritschnig, S. and Weise, S. (2024) “The EURISCO-EVA Information System, an innovative approach to the data management of multi-site crop evaluation data”, Genetic Resources, 5(10), pp. 117–125, doi: https://doi.org/10.46265/genresj.IHXU5248
