Descriptor lists and derived standards

To facilitate the international exchange and use of plant resources, uniformity in data description, collection and record-keeping is critical.

A key focus of Bioversity International's work is to develop documentation standards that enable information exchange and assist countries to improve their capacity to store, manage and share information about their biodiversity. 

Descriptors are the basis of major information platforms such as GENESYS and EURISCO, and also the FAO World Information and Early Warning System.

They are also an important tool to enable information sharing for crops covered under ANNEX 1 of the International Treaty of Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture.

Bioversity in collaboration with international partners has developed five types of descriptors:

Crop descriptors

Provide an international format and a universally understood 'language' for plant genetic resources data. They are targeted at farmers, curators, breeders, scientists and users and facilitate the exchange and use of resources. Information includes such details as the plant's height, flowering patterns and ancestral history.

FAO/Bioversity Multi-crop passport descriptors

Originally published in 2001, the ‘Multi-Crop Passport Descriptors’ (MCPD) is widely used as the international standard to facilitate germplasm passport information exchange. Now expanded to include emerging documentation needs, this new version resulted from consultation with more than 300 scientists from 187 institutions in 87 countries.

Descriptors for Genetic Marker Technologies

A tool for researchers to generate and exchange genetic marker data that are standardized and replicable. They represent the minimum set of descriptors needed to describe a marker technology used with a particular plant species.

Key access and utilization descriptors for crop genetic resources

Initial sets of characterization and evaulation descriptors for crop genetic resources. These descriptors will become the basis for the information portal being developed by Bioversity to facilitate access and use of plant samples (accessions) held in genebanks.

Descriptors for farmers' knowledge of plants

The first attempt to capture and share information between farmers and scientists, integrating biology with traditional knowledge.

For further information about Plant Genetic Resource Descriptors, contact:
 pgr-descriptor(at)cgiar.org 

Further Reading:

• ‘Guidelines for Developing Crop Descriptor Lists’
•  List of available Crop Descriptor lists  (94 KB)
• Search Descriptors Lists
• Guidebook for Genetic Resources Documentation