Biosample Repository Facility

The Biosample Repository Facility (BRF) was established in 1999 to collect and bank human biospecimens for research. The BRF has an extensive bank of retrospectively collected, clinically annotated blood and tissue specimens. The BRF also works with individual investigators on prospective collection of specimens and specialized specimen processing requests, as needed.

The Biosample Repository Facility is a shared resource that coordinates the ethical collection, storage, annotation and distribution of de-identified or coded human blood and tissue specimens to support translational and basic research. The BRF adheres to National Cancer Institute (NCI) Best Practices for Biospecimen Resources and participates in the NCI Office of Biorepositories and Biospecimen Resources and Biospecimen Research Network (https://biospecimens.cancer.gov). The BRF assists in identification of appropriate biospecimens and data for proposed studies. The BRF also provides additional support for specimen banking and tissue research services for specialized programs such as the Risk Assessment Program (RAP) and investigator-initiated research studies for Cancer Center members. 

Specimen types banked:

• Whole blood
• ACD (acid citrate dextrose) plasma
• EDTA plasma 
• Serum
• Buffy coat
• Viable leukocytes
• Formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissue 
• Snap-frozen tissue

Specimens collected on request:

• Urine
• Saliva, buccal swabs
• Effusion fluids
• Fresh tissue 

Tissue services:

• Custom tissue microarray (TMA) construction
• Immunohistochemical staining 
• Image analysis – Vectra Multispectral Imaging system

Consultation services and data:

• Assistance with selection of appropriate biospecimens and data for individual projects
• Feasibility determination required for project approval
• Limited data includes age, gender, race, ethnicity, diagnosis/disease site, histology, stage, grade and is routinely available.
• Extended data includes the above plus treatment (surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, immunotherapy), first recurrence, treatment agents and medications, biomarkers, genetic testing information, follow-up information. We note, requests for extended data require custom curation by facilities staff, and may take weeks to compile.