This page contains the current definition, format and controlled vocabularly for specimen voucher qualifier.

The page has been created on Ocober 9, 2013.

Qualifier: /specimen_voucher=

Definition: identifier for the specimen from which the nucleic acid sequenced was obtained

Value format: /specimen_voucher=”[<institution-code>:[<collection-code>:]]<specimen_id>”

Please note structured vouchers include institution-codes (and optional collection-codes) are taken from a

controlled vocabulary maintained by the INSDC that denotes the museum or herbarium collection where

the specimen resides: ftp://ftp.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pub/taxonomy/coll_dump.txt

Example:

/specimen_voucher=”UAM:Mamm:52179″

/specimen_voucher=”AMCC:101706″

/specimen_voucher=”USNM:field series 8798″

/specimen_voucher=”personal:Dan Janzen:99-SRNP-2003″

/specimen_voucher=”99-SRNP-2003″ 

Comment: the /specimen_voucher qualifier is intended to annotate a reference to the physical specimen

that remains after the sequence has been obtained; if the specimen was destroyed in the process of sequencing,

electronic images (e-vouchers) are an adequate substitute for a physical voucher specimen; ideally the specimens

will be deposited in a curated museum, herbarium, or frozen tissue collection, but often they will remain in a

personal or laboratory collection for some time before they are deposited in a curated collection; there are three

forms of specimen_voucher qualifiers; if the text of the qualifier includes one or more colons it is a ‘structured

voucher’;