Insect collections and DNA analyses: how to manage collections?

Numerous papers have been published recently regarding deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) studies of museum insect specimens. Despite the great enthusiasm for such analyses, there continues to be a potential conflict between specimen maintenance and their use for experimental procedures, since DNA extraction methods are sample destructive. This has created a strong limitation for studies on museum specimens, making it impossible to work on rare or irreplaceable species. However, new methods for improving insect preservation have been recently published, together with new procedures for performing less destructive DNA extractions that combine specimen maintenance and DNA extraction.