Resources for Managing Biospecmens

The GRCF Biorepository at Johns Hopkins has been dedicated to meeting the storage needs of the Hopkins community. Located onsite at the Johns Hopkins East Baltimore campus, the GRCF Biorepository offers a range of frozen storage options across a diversity of sample types. In 2013, the GRCF Biorepository was recognized as a CAP-accredited facility offering superior services in storage, cryopreservation, shipping, and processing. The GRCF Biorepository is an active member of ISBER and strictly adheres to guidelines set forth by ISBER best biorepository practices.

 GRCF Biorepository

The Green Lab Certification process educates and engages JHU scientists who wish to reduce the environmental impact of their lab. By incorporating personalized best practices identified by the Office of Sustainability, labs can foster a culture of sustainability that can help preserve energy and water, reduce waste, and save money all while remaining safe and supporting the groundbreaking research done at JHU.  Email sustainability@jhu.edu to learn more and get started today!

https://sustainability.jhu.edu/engage/get-involved/green-labs/

Research involving the use of human and human-derived tissue, infectious agents/pathogens, or toxins must be registered with the Biosafety Office in order to maintain compliance with institutional and federal regulations. Human tissue includes tissue samples and/or blood from patients, volunteers, or cadavers as well as human-derived cells in tissue culture. Common laboratory cell lines including HEK293 and Hela are not exempt and must be registered.

Infectious agents and pathogens include all bacterial, viral, and fungal agents with potential for vertical or horizontal transmission. "Host-specific" viruses and viral vectors commonly used for gene transfer must also be registered. This includes, but is not limited to, adenovirus, MuLV, and other commercially available or investigator-generated modified lentiviral and retroviral-based vectors.

 Human Tissue, Pathogen, and Toxin Registration

OpenSpecimen is a Biospecimen Information Management System that is a scalable solution for a biorepository which meets the needs of a broad group of investigators and biobanks.

OpenSpecimen - A Bio-bank Management Tool

The Service Center is able to provide Johns Hopkins University investigators with a variety of laboratory and repository services for conducting large or small scale epigenetic, natural history, clinical trial, prospective and case-control studies.

The JHBR Service Center provides, on a fee-for-service basis, a wide range of services including, but not limited to, phlebotomy, blood and other body fluid collection, specimen fractionation and processing, testing, storage, as well as DNA isolation, quantification, and concentration normalization

 https://www.jhsph.edu/research/labs/biorepository/

Johns Hopkins All Children’s Pediatric Biorepository is located in the Outpatient Care Center and is directly accessible from Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital by using the pedestrian bridge. The biorepository includes a receiving center, bioprocessing lab and secure cryostorage room. An expansion to the biorepository is expected to be completed by 2018. The facility environment and all cryoequipment are surveyed 24/7 by a remote monitoring and alarm system.

https://www.hopkinsallchildrens.org/Academics/Research/Cores-Shared-Resources-and-Support/Basic-Science/Biorepository-(1)/About-the-Facility

ISBER is a global biobanking organization that creates opportunities for networking, education, and innovation. ISBER provides a community for harmonizing approaches to emerging challenges in repositories, as well as fostering ideas to create new solutions.

Key elements of ISBER's activities include: creating educational and training opportunities; providing a forum for the dissemination of state-of-the-art policies, processes, and research findings; and showcasing innovative technologies, products, and services.

https://www.isber.org/