The biobank of federal nonprofit academic research institution “Research Centre for Medical Genetics” (“RCMG”, Moscow) was organized in 2017 in response to the urgent need to intensify the pre-analytical stage of work with an increasing flow of biomaterials from patients with genetic diseases.

The organizationally chosen format of the biobank’s activity corresponds to the common use centers (CUC). In accordance with the initial project the CUC “Biobank” has 2 departments of systematic storage and work with related biomaterials:

• GBB-genetic blood bank (whole blood, blood fractions);
• CBGD-a cell bank of genetic diseases (frozen tissue fragments, samples of patients’ vital ‘ cell material – cell lines, and their derivatives).

The biobank is equipped with basic equipment and consumables necessary for receiving, registering, processing, storing and preparing biomaterial for research. Processed, secondary samples of biomaterial are placed in storage systems at ultra-low temperatures (- 80 °C) – blood, components, biological fluids and in liquid nitrogen (- 196 °C, LN2) – tissue fragments, vital cell lines.

According to the content of the collection funds of the storage of the CUC “Biobank” belongs to the category of nosological repositories. The CUC “Biobank” webpage from the official website of the FSBI “RCMG” contains periodically updated electronic catalogs with the characteristics of deposited samples in the storage systems of both departments of repository GBB and CBGD (https://med-gen.ru/o-tcentre/struktura/tcentr-kollektivnogo-pol-zovaniia-biobank/). The page also provides regulatory documentation and application forms for interested users.

CUC “Biobank” works in permanently cooperation with all scientific and clinical departments of “RCMG”. The practical work of the biobank includes the pre-analytical stage, preparation of the biomaterial for the study, as well as participation in the study and processing of the results obtained. A significant part of the scientific papers published by “RCMG” contains references to the collection funds and services provided by the CUC “Biobank”.

The development strategy of the CUC “Biobank” involves the constant expansion of the available arsenal of primary biomaterial in order to more completely cover the structures of the human body subjected to a variety of genetic pathologies.