Czech biobank network received funding for development and modernisation

Executive Director of BBMRI.cz, doc. Roman Hrstka, adds: "I believe that the expansion of storage capacities and the introduction of robotic or automated processes in sample processing will move biobanks significantly forward. I am also pleased that the portfolio of expert analyses offered to the broader scientific community will be expanded by the acquisition of highly specialized instruments."

During the project realization (1 April 2024-31 December 2026), the plan is to acquire more than 50 instruments that will (i) contribute to the automation and robotization of biobanks; (ii) upgrade instruments used in the pre-analytical phase of biological material preparation; or (iii) enable the introduction of advanced expert analyses on biological material.In addition, bioinformatics systems and databases of biobanks will be updated and further developed as needed.

Thanks to the BBMRInv project, all member biobanks, which are part of the large research infrastructure BBMRI.cz focused on long-term storage of unique biological material and data from healthy donors or patients (or biobanking), will be upgraded.

At present, the infrastructure consists of 8 biobanks, or rather the institutions that cover them. The BBMRI.cz includes leading Czech universities (Charles University and its 3 biobanks at the medical faculties in Hradec, Plzeň and the 1st Medical Faculty in Prague; Masaryk University, Palacký University in Olomouc) as well as specialized medical institutions such as the Institute of Rheumatology, the Institute of Haematology and Blood Transfusion and the Masaryk Institute of Oncology, which is the coordinator of the infrastructure.The aim of the infrastructure is to provide biological material and related data for scientific research purposes in accordance with the legal, ethical and social framework.