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Nature 441, 567-569 (1 June 2006) | doi:10.1038/441567a; Published online 31 May 2006

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Biodiversity: Cashing in on the rich coast

Rex Dalton1

  1. Rex Dalton is Nature's West Coast correspondent.

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Costa Rica's flagship conservation institute needs help. Can a new deal with industry save it? Rex Dalton investigates.

Along Costa Rica's Pacific coast, scientific explorers are trying to turn over a new leaf for a storied institute — the National Biodiversity Institute, or INBio.Near a crocodile-infested river in Guanacaste province, an international team searches for bacteria that one day may become a drug or industrial product.