Biobank Facility
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Services
The LUMC Biobank Facility offers a comprehensive advisory service for researchers and clinicians involved in biobanking and long-term storage collections. Our experts offer tailored guidance on all relevant rules, regulations and operation requirements to ensure compliant and high-quality biobank and collection management.
Users can request expert support and information on:
- Existing and new biobanks & long-term storage collections – guidance on setting up and/or managing biobanks and collections.
- Ethical review – support with ethical review committee assessments and consent procedures.
- Biomaterial collection, processing and storage – best practices for secure, standardized handling and long-term preservation.
- Transfer of collections – procedure for transferring materials and/or data to LUMC or external collaborators.
- Quality assurance – support in implementing and maintaining quality systems.
- Information-model consultancy – advice on data structures and metadata standards.
The LUMC Biobank Facility offers a comprehensive advisory service for researchers and clinicians involved in biobanking and long-term storage collections. Our experts offer tailored guidance on all relevant rules, regulations and operation requirements to ensure compliant and high-quality biobank and collection management.
Users can request expert support and information on:
- Existing and new biobanks & long-term storage collections – guidance on setting up and/or managing biobanks and collections.
- Ethical review – support with ethical review committee assessments and consent procedures.
- Biomaterial collection, processing and storage – best practices for secure, standardized handling and long-term preservation.
- Transfer of collections – procedure for transferring materials and/or data to LUMC or external collaborators.
- Quality assurance – support in implementing and maintaining quality systems.
- Information-model consultancy – advice on data structures and metadata standards.
In addition to its core biobanking services, the facility manages the LUMC Volunteer Donor Service. This service provides access to biomaterials from healthy volunteer donors, available in both fresh and frozen formats. These materials can be requested for internal research projects within LUMC as well as for collaborative studies with external partners.
Equipment
Biobanks and long‑term sample collections are stored within the central LUMC Biobank Facility, which is equipped with multiple temperature-controlled storage environments to ensure the integrity and long‑term preservation of biomaterials. Depending on the type of sample, materials are stored in:
- Ultra‑low temperature freezers (−70/−80 °C) for long‑term preservation of most biomaterials.
- Liquid nitrogen tanks for cryogenic storage at extremely low temperatures.
- Room‑temperature archive for materials suitable for ambient storage.
Biobanks and long‑term sample collections are stored within the central LUMC Biobank Facility, which is equipped with multiple temperature-controlled storage environments to ensure the integrity and long‑term preservation of biomaterials. Depending on the type of sample, materials are stored in:
- Ultra‑low temperature freezers (−70/−80 °C) for long‑term preservation of most biomaterials.
- Liquid nitrogen tanks for cryogenic storage at extremely low temperatures.
- Room‑temperature archive for materials suitable for ambient storage.
This controlled infrastructure ensures that all samples remain stable, traceable and compliant with biobanking standards.
Quality assurance
To ensure biological material and data collections are of appropriate quality we follow SOPs for standardized handling of the materials and associated data. The life cycle of a sample is fully traceable.
To guarantee sample integrity, all our cooling devices are continuously monitored by an alarm system. The performance of each freezer is evaluated monthly, and devices are routinely serviced.
The use of biomaterials aligns with ethical standards, legal requirements and donor privacy protections. We stay up to date on current national and international legislation. Our aim is to work towards obtaining the ISO-20387 accreditation for biobanking.
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About us
Mission
The LUMC Biobank Facility enables high‑quality biomedical research by providing accessible, well‑governed biobanks and collections. Biomaterials and data are handled to ensure reproducibility and confidentiality, in line with ethical principles, legislation and LUMC policy. Transparency across LUMC supports multidisciplinary use of shared collections.
Vision
The LUMC Biobank Facility aims to standardize all LUMC biobanks using harmonized templates aligned with legislation, ethical requirements and LUMC policies. All steps of the sample journey follow national and international standards and are fully traceable. Storage systems are continuously monitored to ensure sample integrity. Within five years, the central biobank facility will operate under a fully standardized framework, with pre‑analytical processes increasingly automated.
Contact
Central Biobank Facility
Biobankfacility@lumc.nl
LUMC Volunteer Donor Service:
LuVDS@lumc.nl
Phone: 0031 71 526 2680
Location
LUMC Building 1
Albinusdreef 2
2333 ZA Leiden
Opening hours: Mon-Fri 9-17h