Cost - Per submitted request, the cost is $100.00 for distribution costs and $75.00 for each strain. Strains are prepared on filter paper in foil packets to ensure safe and sterile delivery to you. BSL2 Strains will be $100.00 for distribution costs and $100.00 for each strain. Therefore, if your order contains BLS1 and BSL2 strains, the BSL1 strains will be $75.00 each strain while the BSL2 will be $100.00 for each strain. Large orders (more than 12) can be made but will need to be coordinated.

Shipping and Timing - The timing for shipments is 2 weeks to (possibly) a few months after the completed UBMTA is completed by both institutions. Most strains can be revived and prepared quickly and can be shipped out within 2 weeks of the paperwork’s completion. However, some strains require special growth conditions which can drastically change timing (BSL2, CO2 requirements, slow growers.)

For requests in the USA, shipping is included in the cost. We reserve the right to decide carrier and shipping method, but if your institution has special requirements, please be sure to note these in the “notes” field of your request. Shipments outside of the USA will have a $100.00 international surcharge and may require special arrangements. If your campus has a preferred vendor we can try to work with them. If you have a broker, we encourage you to arrange with a known broker as we do not have brokers to assist. If your country/region has restrictions on GMO organisms, pathogens, etc, we may require documentation that the order will not be denied, or may require you to provide your own shipping arrangements. If you arrange your own shipping and pay, the $100.00 surcharge will be waved.

To request strains, please proceed to the strain page to select the strains through many search options (publications, species, etc).

Policy - The yH Strain Collection was established to provide published yeast and plasmid strains to interested academic institutions interested in obtaining published strains for research purposes. The collection has been set up to provide these strains at a fair cost for maintaining the collection, reviving the strains, handling the legal paperwork, and sending the strains to the requesting lab. The Collection will complete requests in the most timely fashion we can without compromising legal expectations and strain quality.

All strain requests require a statement about the intended work that will be done with the strain(s). This addition in 2024 is a new requirement on both local and federal documentations.

Large and bulk orders need to be discussed in advance. For orders larger than 12 strains, please contact us.

Any requests made for collaborative purposes and that are accepted are not charged, but will be tracked and documented.

Non-academic requests will be handled through WARF or OIP.

Procedures The yH Strain Collection will accept requests from any and all academic institutions interested in obtaining our published strains for research purposes, as long as they comply with the required MTA paperwork and pay for the requested strains.

1. When requests are received a personalized MTA will be sent to the requesting party for completion at their institution.
2. Once the MTA is completed on the recipient’s end and returned, the curator will move the MTA into the hands of either UW-Madison or WARF (depending on the requested strain) for completion of the paperwork on the side of UW-Madison.
3. Once the MTA is completed at UW-Madison, the curator will begin reviving strains. Once the count of strains that revived properly is ascertained, communication with the requesting lab will be made and an invoice will be sent to be paid via ACH.
4. Once payment is complete, the strain(s) will be sent. Included will be a receipt of payment, copy of the MTA/UBMTA, and revival instructions.

Refunds If a strain is not able to be revived at the yH Strain Collection we will not include that strain in the final count when the invoice is supplied.

If a strain is not able to be revived by the requesting party, the collection reserves the right to send strains again, in a different fashion (on plates if possible), or by other available means to get a viable strain to the requesting party. In the rare event that a strain is still not able to revive by the receiving party, the situation will need to be reviewed for how to best handle the issue.

Shipments will be done with tracking information (if availalbe)so that loss due to shipment errors is minimalized unless shipment is handled by the recipient or if the shipping means prevent tracking.

Overseas shipments will need to be handled on a case-by-case basis as each country has individual laws and policies for handing microorganisms, GMO products, and many other import issues.

Loss of Ordering privileges Though not anticipated, it seems prudent to describe what actions might cause an institution, lab, or person to lose ordering priveledges from the yH Strain Collection. The following actions will cause orders to be scrutinized:

• Commercialization of the strain without working with UW-Madison and WARF.
• Not paying the full amount of the invoice.
• Sharing the strain(s) to other labs without first obtaining permission from the yH Strain Collection.
• Publication without noting from where the strain(s) was obtained.