About biobanks and Biobank Graz in particular.
Biobanks are collections of biological specimens and their associated data, organised in a structured, readily analysable format. In Austria the history of biobanking is based on a royal decree published in 1813 that remitted medical doctors to collect pathological specimens. Biobank Graz, a publicly-owned non-profit organisation, became a central research infrastructure of the Medical University of Graz in 2007. Today, Biobank Graz is the largest academic biobank in Europe housing more than 6 million human specimens including blood, serum, plasma, buffy coat, fresh frozen tissues, formalin fixed, paraffin embedded (FFPE) tissues as well as their associated clinical data. This collection of samples and data represents the perfect basis to support national and international research in an optimal way.
