Preparing for Biobanking 4.0: Biospecimens in a Distributed, Digital and Data Driven World
Biobanking for Precision Medicine
July 23, 2025 | 3:30 PM – 5:00 PM
Virtual
We invite you to attend the Biobanking for Precision Medicine seminar series.
The seminar series is brought to you by NCI’s Biorepositories and Biospecimen Research Branch (BBRB) and addresses current topics in biobanking science, policy and operations. In the era of precision medicine, high quality biospecimens are central to understanding complex diseases, biomarker discovery and unraveling the mechanisms of resistance to therapies. The seminar series is intended to be forward-looking with a focus on improving awareness of best practices for collection of biospecimens and associated data as well as expanding research participation through biobanking.
Our focus for 2025 is on biobanking in the digital age, and this talk will be the first part of the mini-series on this theme.
| Topic: | Preparing for Biobanking 4.0: Biospecimens in a Distributed, Digital and Data Driven World |
| Date: | Wednesday, July 23rd, 2025, 3:30 – 5 PM ET 3:30-4:30 PM: Presentation and brief Q&A; 4:30-5 PM: Interactive session with speaker |
| Speaker: | Daniel Catchpoole PhD FFSc (RCPA) Professor, Deputy Head of School Research (HDR Progression) Co-Director, Biomedical Data Science Laboratory School of Computer Science, Faculty of Information Technology The University of Technology Sydney, Australia |
| Location: | Virtual (Webex) Participants must register using the WebEx link prior to the meeting. https://cbiit.webex.com/weblink/register/redaae71a63a04e3301617861451fcc1c |
Abstract:
This presentation will explore the next emerging stage where biobanking is characterized by being part of system - Biobanking 4.0. Biobanking has always been about data generation with tissue specimens providing the biological and genomic information about a patient or donor. Within Biobanking 4.0 biospecimens are viewed ‘packages’ of information that once unpacked through ‘omics’ technologies provide a complex amount of digital information, able to be deciphered through novel computer science, including machine learning and AI. Using examples of our local biobanking activity I will define the growing role biobanks have in feeding the informatics pipelines that now function as integrated translational and clinical research data ecosystems enabled via data driven strategies including federated learning. The emerging needs of these ever increasingly intricate data driven systems are projected to have an impact on current biobanking practices requiring a more immediate and dynamic tissue handling activity where sample storage is not as prominent but a more distributed biobanking infrastructure will need to be established, utilizing novel enterprise architecture including blockchain. Finally, consideration of how new strategies for biospecimens management will challenge current dogma around patient engagement through their biospecimens into research including an exploration of the principles around the need for informed consent, anonymization practices, data ownership and commodification, donor agency as well as equity in data access to all researchers.
About the Speaker:
Prof Catchpoole was appointed Head of the Tumour Bank at The Children’s Hospital at Westmead, Sydney in 2001, where he has established a tissue-based research program within the Children’s Cancer Research Unit of Kids Research. Over 25 years in biobanking he has built a strong record for professional networking, bringing diverse professionals from across the world to establish a strong biobanking environment supporting the latest biospecimen-driven research. His leadership is recognized with him being one of three founding members and first President of The Australasian Biospecimens Network Association as well as President of the Australasian Genome Technologies Association. In 2019, he was elected by his international peers to the position of President of the International Society for Biological and Environmental Repositories (ISBER). More recently he was appointed to Australia’s National Association of Testing Authorities (NATA) to chair their Biobanking Accreditation Advisory Committee. Currently, he is Deputy Head of School (Research) at The School of Computer Science, Faculty of Engineering and IT at The University of Technology, NSW Australia. There, his research focus is on how biospecimens now represent an informatics problem requiring computational solutions and considers what this means for biobanking infrastructure.
Please note that, with our speakers’ authorization, NCI records presentations for the NIH and the general public. Please contact Veena Gopalakrishnan (veena.gopalakrishnan@nih.gov) for questions about this event.
Individuals who need reasonable accommodation to participate in this event should contact Veena Gopalakrishnan (veena.gopalakrishnan@nih.gov), 240-276-5123, at least 5 business days in advance of the seminar date to discuss accommodation needs.