Biobanks are specialised organisations that collect, process, store, and distribute biological materials with the associated data obtained from humans and animals for future use in research.

What are human biobanks?

Human biobanks are the biorepositories storing biological materials from human beings. Human biomaterials include but are not limited to human blood, serum, plasma, urine, tissues, cells, DNA, proteins, teeth, hair, feces, organs, solid tumours, etc., collected and preserved at biobanks for research purposes.

How are human biomaterials collected?

Human biomaterials are usually collected during biopsies, surgeries, or laboratory tests as a part of diagnosis, treatment or clinical procedures. The specimens are collected after obtaining consent from the donor and are stored at biobanks.

In biobanks, human Biospecimens are usually stored in large cryogenic units or freezers to preserve the integrity and physiological properties of the sample for the long term. It is called as biobanking. Specific samples such as tumour tissues are processed and stored as formalin fixed-paraffin-embedded (FFPE) blocks or sections.