Concertation, harmonization and integration of the biobank infrastructure in Antwerp within the European BBMRI initiative

Concertation, harmonization and integration of the biobank infrastructure in Antwerp within the European BBMRI initiative.Structural biobanks, i.e. collections of high quality samples together with large sets of well-documented, up-to-date epidemiological, clinical, molecular information from large numbers of patients and controls, are essential for the advancement of research and development of life sciences. They are especially important for translational biomedical research, which is often based on innovative, high-throughput technologies, where access to large collections of human biological materials and related (clinical) data from patients and health donors is a crucial and rate-limiting step. The scientific and socioeconomic impact of biobanks and their integration into national and international networks is crucial. The pan-European Biobanking and Biomolecular Resources Research Infrastructure (BBMRI) aims at improving the accessibility and interoperability of population-based and clinical-oriented collections of biological samples in Europe. This project aims to set up and maintain local biobank infrastructures in Antwerp (at UA/UZA) within a harmonized quality framework, according to ethical and legal requirements, with common access procedures and an integrated catalogue of available samples. Enhancing the catalogue function will enable effective collaboration between different researchers and will bring biobank collections together on a single virtual harmonization platform. This will allow UA reseachers to strengthen their participation in the European biobank and research networks conform international quality and connectivity standards.

Keywords:EXPERIMENTAL STUDY, EUROPEAN COOPERATION, GENETIC SCREENING

Disciplines:Scientific computing, Bioinformatics and computational biology, Systems biology, Laboratory medicine, Morphological sciences, Palliative care and end-of-life care, Regenerative medicine, Other basic sciences, Other clinical sciences, Public health care, Public health services, Other health sciences, Nursing, Other paramedical sciences, Other translational sciences, Other medical and health sciences