The Danish National Biobank
Denmark is at the forefront of epidemiological research. This is to a large extent due to the unique Danish registers which provide detailed information about the entire population. With the establishment of a very large national biobank and the possibility of linkage between the biological specimens and the information contained in the Danish registers, health research is given new and unique possibilities.
For the Danish National Biobank site, press here.
Strengthening of the research infrastructure
Statens Serum Institut (SSI) has received a large research grant from The Novo Nordisk Foundation and the Ministry of Science Technology and Innovation to establish a national biobank. The goal is to strengthen the Danish research infrastructure and thereby the conditions for Danish public health research and international research collaborations. It is the plan to establish what will be one of the world's largest biobanks and internationally an absolutely unique resource to the great benefit of research in the cause, prevention and treatment of diseases.
The initiative consists of the following three parts:
The Danish Biobank Register
A Danish biobank register with detailed information on the specimens made available by the Danish health services and the largest research biobanks, including the specimens at SSI.
A large biobank at SSI
A large national biobank based on the specimens submitted to SSI. The material currently includes just under 10 million specimens. In addition to the actual specimen reception, storing and retrieval, the biobank will include developmental projects whose purpose it is to improve our possibilities to extract valuable information from biological material.
A Coordinating Centre
The centre coordinates the biobank register and the national biobank and is responsible for the daily management of activities. The centre also counsels and assists researchers in questions relating to the use of the biobank register and the national biobank.
22 million biological specimens
By establishing the Danish National Biobank, it becomes possible to take advantage of the great potential of the many biological specimens collected by the Danish public health sector. Researchers will get a unique overview of, and access to, more than 20 million biological specimens in existing as well as future collections. Projects approved by the Scientific Ethics Committee and the Danish Data Protection Agency will obtain permission to link biological material from one individual with the great amount of further information to be found in the national registers within e.g. the public health.
A great collaboration
The Danish National Biobank is a joint initiative between Statens Serum Institut, hospitals, universities and other public research institutions collecting or using biological material.