BioBanking
A biobank (biorepository or tissue bank) is a repository of human biological material — organs, tissue, blood, cells and other body fluids — that contains at least traces of DNA or RNA that would allow genetic analysis. It originally referred to large population banks of human tissue and related data. [1]
Contents
Introduction
Biobanks are a new frontier for biomolecular research, clinical genomics and personal medicine that seeks to integrate collections of bio-specimens (blood, DNA, tissue, biopsy specimens, etc) with corresponding patient data such as genetic profiles, medical histories, and lifestyle information.
By combining and comparing biological tissue samples with genetic and historical patient information, researchers will be able to investigate the fundamental mechanisms of diseases in rich new ways. New insights into molecular and genetic processes will lead to better techniques for predicting who may be susceptible to particular illnesses, as well as to more targeted and innovative ways to treat many diseases.
Issues
As medicine and information technologies continue to converge, biobanking offers new abilities to study the complex interaction between genes, the environment and social factors. One element of the movement toward “information-based medicine” and computational biology, biobanking promises to be an essential tool for translating new biomedical knowledge into new clinical practices, diagnostic techniques and preventative treatments.
While biobanking is still in its infancy, some critics question whether behavioral and lifestyle data can be tracked and measured against genetic data in ways that will lead to major breakthroughs. Others challenge the assumption that genetics plays a decisive role in most disease processes.
Leading Biobanking Projects & Institutions
Leading Biobanking Projects & Institutions
Privacy Issues
Technical Issues
Biobanking Related Companies
- Achiever Medical - Advanced Tissue Banking
- Ardais
- BioStorage Technologies
- Cytomyx
- Integrated Laboratory Services - Biotech (ILSbio)
- LabVantage Solutions
- SeraCare Life Sciences (Genomics Collaborative unit)
Biobanking Events & Conferences
Biobanking Events & Conferences
Biobanking FAQs
Q. What types of technology are used to store all of this data. How much data is it? What kind of processors/equipment is used to analyze the data? How does it capture the data?
A. The spectrum of biobanks varies widely depending on their scope and the types of research they are supporting. The two critical factors that determine how much data they generate depends largely on two factors: 1) how many samples are part of the biobank, and 2) what kinds of molecular data is being generated to support the research endeavor.
Biobanks can range from as few as 10 or 50 samples for a very specific study, to hundreds of thousands of samples for a prospective, large-scale biobanking initiative.
Biobanking research focused on molecular data can generate multiple terabytes daily. For example, some proteomics labs are generating 2-4 TB a day already, and this data intensity is expected to grow as the number of samples increase with high-throughput processing
Key Challenges to Biobanking
- Anonymizing, or de-identifying, samples to protect patient privacy
- Standardizing sample preparation, storage protocols
- Enabling interoperability and data exchange between biobanks
- Resolving issues such as who owns and controls specimens and refining informed consent practices as biobanking expands
