To users of bioresources,

On April 8^th, 2020, the RIKEN Emergency Management Headquarters ordered all RIKEN personnel to work from home until May 10^th, except for those engaged in essential tasks such as the maintenance of invaluable experimental animal and plant resources. This order has been issued to protect employees’ health and contribute to containing the spread of the novel coronavirus by reducing human traffic and contacts. This decision was also made in consideration of the wide spread of the novel coronavirus in Japan, the Prime Minister of Japan declaring a state of emergency for Tokyo, Kanagawa, Saitama, Chiba, Osaka, Hyogo, and Fukuoka prefectures on April 7^th, and the governors of those prefectures issuing requests for the public to refrain from going outdoors thereafter.

Following the order, RIKEN BioResource Research Center suspends all deposition/distribution services on Thursday, April 9^th in order to focus on maintenance of the important bioresources.

This emergency order will continue until Sunday, May 10^th. However, there are so many uncertainties at this moment. We will announce the date of the resumption of deposition/distribution services as soon as it is decided.

Please accept our sincere apology for any inconvenience that may be caused by this emergency measure.

We thank you for your understanding and for your continuous support.

For inquiries regarding this announcement, please contact the following Divisions in charge of the respective resources.

For the moment, we wish you all the health, and hope that we will be soon able to help your research once again.

RIKEN BioResource Research Center