Tissue Banking: Collection, Processing, and Pathologic Characterization of Biospecimens for Research - Biomedical Informatics in Translational Research - page 31

CHAPTER 3
Tissue Banking: Collection, Processing,
and Pathologic Characterization of
Biospecimens for Research

Jeffrey Hooke, Leigh Fantacone, and Craig Shriver

This chapter provides an overview of tissue banking practices and is intended to
serve as a guide that can be adapted, as appropriate, to the mission and scientific
needs of individual biospecimen resources. Details about laboratory methods and
procedures can be found elsewhere [1]. The principles set forth in this discussion are
based on a model developed by the Clinical Breast Care Project (CBCP), a joint
breast cancer research project between Walter Reed Army Medical Center and
Windber Research Institute that was established in 2001. Although the focus of the
CBCP is breast disease, the principles described herein can be applied, with only
slight modifications, to other organ systems as well.

3.1 Introduction

3.1.1 A Biorepository's Mandate
In today's era of high-throughput genomic and proteomic research, there is a
demand for high-quality and well-annotated tissue. Unfortunately, human speci-
mens when available are often unsuitable for genomic and proteomics research
because of the type of preservation method (i.e., formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded
tissue instead of frozen tissue) and the absence of supporting clinical and demo-
graphic data. Although emerging technologies for retrieval of ribonucleic acid
(RNA) and protein from formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissue may per-
mit the use of these samples for genomics and proteomics research, the lack of uni-
form tissue acquisition procedures and standardized protocols for specimen
handling may limit the usefulness of many biologic specimens and preclude compar-
isons of research results obtained at different institutions. Finally, the type of
informed consent obtained from many biorepositories is not sufficiently robust to
allow the unrestricted use of these specimens for long-term follow-up.
The goal of a biorepository is to increase the quantity and variety of high-qual-
ity samples. All types of biospecimens (diseased and nondiseased tissue, blood and
its various components, bone marrow, and so on) are potentially useful for

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