Biorepository

The TRIBE Biorepository System (TBS) facilitates global sharing of specimens among investigators to facilitate research leading to treatments and cures for complex clinical syndromes by improving researchers' access to human biospecimens. The scope of the biorepository includes providing guidance and support for all aspects of translational research studies that involve human biospecimens. This incorporates practices for the collection, handling, and processing of specimens, models and templates for informed consent, ethical and legal guidelines for handling human subject material for research and treatment, and links to related publications and protocols and other useful information. TBS houses more than 500,000 specimen aliquots collected form more than 5,000 patients over 42 studies. The TBS objectives can be summarized as follows:

• Acquire biospecimens for the TRIBE Biorepository System by supporting recruitment in translational research protocols
• Store DNA, plasma, serum, perfusates, urine, and other human biospecimens for future analysis at optimal temperatures
• Establish and maintain secured databases for data storage and sample inventory
• Share stored biological specimens to interested investigators for research
• Development and maintenance of a quality assurance program with continuous auditing and real time reporting

Resources

• 19 x -80°C freezers
• 1 x -20°C freezer
• 2 x 4°C fridges

Sample Inventory Management System (SIMS)

The Samples Inventory Management System (SIMS) is a Web-based platform for managing the life cycle of biological samples, mainly urine and blood, collected as part of multiple clinical studies in the field of nephrology. In our network of collaborating institutions, personnel collect samples, store them in freezers, and deliver them to other laboratories as needed. We designed SIMS to track and monitor this multifaceted process. The system supports multiple simultaneous users and provides the functionality to manage the following data categories. All aspects of biospecimen management are supported, including:

• Specification of biospecimen collection protocols as part of a clinical study, in terms of time-points, the source tissues to be sampled at each time point, and the number of aliquots for each sample.
• Generation of barcoded labels that are used to tag containers and are sent out to collaborating institutions and used to store collected biospecimens (which are then shipped back to our laboratory for analysis).
• Recording of samples that are received by our laboratory, with bar-code scanning (including recovery from scanning errors).
• Tracking of storage location of samples in terms of freezer and sub-locations (e.g., rack, slot, box).
• Tracking of samples that are shipped to external laboratories for analysis (and tracking of shipments, in terms of boxes, used for this purpose).
• Tracking of aliquot consumption, either as part of bulk-shipping for analysis, or dispatching of individual samples to research collaborators.
• Reporting on various aspects, such as aliquots consumed, and aliquots available (by patient, biospecimen type, and time point); reporting on the status of a freezer sublocation in terms of biospecimen content.

Please reach out to us for more information or if you are interested in utilizing our biorepository and/or SIMS.