JHBUI Biorepository and Translational Research Service Center

Summary of Service Center

 The Urology Biorepository and Translational Research Service Center provides four separate services to the JHMI community and its collaborators that will allow researchers with limited resources and/or a smaller research staff the ability to conduct research without the burden of maintaining funding support to cover the salaries and costs contained within this service center.  The four services that will be offered are the retrospective use of archived clinical specimens, study specific consent and collection of clinical specimens for prospective specimen use, clinical data extraction, and research study support.

Description of Services

Retrospective Sample Use (Internal and External Resource)

The Brady Urological Research Institute maintains a unique collection of patient biospecimens collected for 20+ years. Researchers at Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions or its collaborators from outside the institution, can request access to these specimens for their research purposes. The service center employs a group of research coordinators trained in phlebotomy to allow the biorepository to maintain a steady inventory of specimens available for retrospective use. The biospecimens maintained in our inventory are annotated to clinical data. Biospecimens provided by this bank are de-identified and are provided with a base set of data points: disease type, sex of patient, age range of patient, and sample type. More extensive data sets can be provided for every specimen stored in our bank and access to that data can be provided through the Clinical Data Extraction service. Depending on the investigators request and needs, specimens can also be provided in a blinded fashion with the key being held by the biorepository until it is appropriate to unblind the specimens for final analysis of the study.

Prospective Consent and Collection of Clinical Specimens (Internal and External Resource)

Researchers at Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions or its collaborators from outside the institution, can make requests for research coordinators to collect specific biospecimens (whole blood, urine, bone marrow aspirates, buccal swabs, rectal swabs, or excess tissue from standard of care procedure) for immediate research use. For this service, investigators will provide a set of patient criteria and our research coordinators will actively identify, consent, and collect biospecimens from patients that meet the clients request. Collected specimens will be de-identified by our staff and then delivered or set for pick-up, depending on the investigator’s request.

Biospecimens provided through this service are de-identified and are provided with a base set of data points in addition to the data related to the selection criteria used to identify patients as potential candidates: disease type, sex of patient, age range of patient, and sample type. More extensive data sets can be provided for every specimen stored in our bank and access to that data can be provided through the Clinical Data Extraction service. Depending on the investigators request and needs, specimens can also be provided in a blinded fashion with the key being held by the biorepository until it is appropriate to unblind the specimens for final analysis of the study.

The service center also provides some limited services around the collection of consent and/or specimens that require less coordinator time and resources:

Tissue Only Consent - Working with our collaborators in Pathology, our biobanking protocol will allow you to obtain access to excess tissue from a standard of care procedure. Our coordinators will conduct the informed consent process with patients and personnel from Pathology work with the investigators to provide the required tissue in a de-identified manner.

Collection of Hair - Our study coordinators will utilize our biobanking protocol (or an investigator's separate approved protocol) to complete the informed consent process and obtain a hair specimen from patients that have joined the study.

Clinical Data Extraction (Internal and External Resource)

As a companion service to providing clinical specimens for research, the JHBUI maintains annotated databases capable of providing in depth clinical data linked to the specimens they provide to investigators. The level of data linked to clinical specimens that will be able to be provided is likely to grow due to the development of the Precision Medicine Analytics Platform and the development of Precision Medicine Centers of Excellence within the department.

Leadership

Brandy Yeater | Service Center Manager

Dr. William Isaacs, Ph.D. | Faculty leader, William Thomas Gerrard, Mario Anthony Duhon, and Jennifer and John Chalsty Professor of Urology

Location and hours of operation

Links and Resources

Contacts