Compiled over the course of 80 years, some of the organisms in this living library collection’s glass vials are likely extinct in the natural world, offering an irreplaceable window into the past. For Ben Shen, PhD, a professor of chemistry and director of the Natural Products Discovery Center, and his research team at The Herbert Wertheim UF Scripps Institute for Biomedical Innovation & Technology in Jupiter, Florida, these unexplored microbes — a treasure trove of biodiversity — hold untold promise for treating disease, providing a tantalizing glimpse into the future of drug discovery.