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What is Biobanking? An overview of a fast-growing industry
Novel therapies are moving away from the “one size fits all” concept and are working towards a patient-tailored precision therapy approach 1. Since this transition relies on patient-derived biosamples, it has strongly reshaped the field of biobanking and biospecimens procurement 2,3. The importance of studying both liquid and solid human bioproducts lies within the samples’…
Read MoreThe Universe Within a Blood Tube – Peripheral Blood and Its Components
The term peripheral blood corresponds to all the blood circulating through the body’s blood vessel system and not concentrated within a specific organ (e.g. liver, spleen). While peripheral blood analysis is a classic routine in clinical healthcare practice, its vast number of molecules and cellular components and the relatively easy and non-invasive collection method make…
Read MoreFFPEs or Frozen Tissue – How to Choose Between Their Pros and Cons?
Following biopsy analysis, preserved tissue samples are usually collected in hospital-associated biobanks, research centers, or private companies supporting biomedical research. Such human-derived biospecimens display unique storage capacities for disease-relevant molecular information. Therefore, they are an invaluable source not only for patients diagnosis and choice of treatment but also for the advancement of innovative biomedical…
Read More5 Good Practices for Handling Blood Samples
While peripheral blood and its precious sub-components are gaining growing attention from the biomedical research field, an increasing body of evidence 1,2 shows that even small changes in the pre-analytical conditions may affect sample quality and integrity. These observations drive the urgent need for establishing good practices and unified protocols for blood sample collection,…
Read MoreHow to Choose a Trustworthy Biospecimen Provider?
The vast majority of innovative drugs and therapies depend on real-life evidence extracted from Human Biological Specimens (HBS) and their associated data 1. As a result, significant changes started reshaping the biobanking and biospecimen procurement field, making HBS-dependent studies no longer restricted to hospitals or biobank-associated institutes. Today, the continuously growing private sector can…
Read More6 Cancer Research Advancements Reliant on Human Biospecimens
March 16, 2021 Over the last two decades, oncology research has achieved outstanding results in the way we understand and approach the multifaceted nature of cancer. From immuno-oncology at the forefront to targeted therapies and biomarkers identification, novel therapeutic multiplicity is impressive. Despite their diversification, these therapies have few crucial commonalities: they are targeted, personalized,…
Read MoreHow to Choose the Right Biospecimen for Your Study?
December 2, 2020 When deciding on working with human biospecimens, it is essential to choose the type and format that best fits your project’s final goals. The type of materials (solid tissues/biofluids) and the format in which they are isolated and conserved will define the downstream applications they suit 1. The various types and formats…
Read MoreHow Patient-Derived Biospecimens Drive the Advancements of Biomedical Research?
Over the last years, the focus of biopharma has moved towards precision medicine and immunologic or genetic-based therapies. This transition requires a more in-depth understanding of the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying a given pathological condition. Ethically procured human biospecimens from patients with available clinical history and molecular data are an invaluable resource to biomedical…
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