The
Baker IDI Biobank has samples and clinical information from over 6,000 participants
available for research into cardiovascular disease, diabetes and obesity.
The
Biobank, operating since January 2000, is one of the most
comprehensive collection of samples from patients with cardiovascular
disease and related conditions in Australia. Our key objective is to facilitate
biomarker and genetic research by developing a repository of well-characterised
samples.
Blood samples and
clinical data are collected from both healthy volunteers and people with a
variety of cardiovascular conditions. Nearly 10 years of sample collection
means the Biobank has achieved a critical mass, with several hundred
samples in all of our main cohort groups. In addition, we have
recorded common co-morbidities and have a comprehensive medical history for
most participants that includes blood pressure, cholesterol, glucose and BMI
measurements.
What does the Biobank have in its
freezers?
From all participants:
In addition, over 600 participants, recruited since July
2008, have supplied:
Who are all these samples from?
Samples are from people with
different types of heart disease, diabetes and those with risk factors for
these conditions. The following tables and graphs summaries the risk factor
profiles, age distributions and medical history of participants who have
given blood samples to the Baker IDI Biobank.
Summary of CVD risk
factors recorded for all Biobank participants
| Risk Factor |
Within Biobank † |
| Age in years (Mean ± SD) |
63 ± 15 |
| Male |
3746 (65%) |
| Active smoker |
548 (9%) |
Hypertensive
(as per
medical history* or BP > 140/90 mmHg) |
2760 (48%) |
High cholesterol
(as per
medical history* or total chol > 5.5 mmol/L) |
3199 (55%) |
Overweight
(25 > BMI < 30
kg/m2) |
2282 (40%) |
Obese
(BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2) |
1319 (23%) |
Diabetic
(as per medical
history) |
863 (15%) |
Unless stated, data in table above
are number of people and proportion of the total number of samples within
the Biobank.
†
Analysis done in August 2009, n = 5776.
* Self-reported questionnaire
Number of participants with selected co-morbidities*
| Co-morbidity |
Within Biobank † |
| Coronary artery disease |
1255 |
| Heart failure |
606 |
| Angina |
1293 |
| Stroke |
271 |
| Kidney disease |
284 |
| Sleep apnoea |
188 |
| Depression |
358 |
| Arthritis |
682 |
| Asthma |
837 |
| Retinopathy |
324 |
*Data
from self-report Medical History Questionnaire
† Analysis done in August 2009, n = 5776;
participants may have more than one co-morbidity.
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What about healthy controls?
The Biobank also collects samples from people without any CVD history,
diabetes or risk factors for CVD or diabetes. These samples may be used as
control samples. We can also search the database using specific inclusion
and exclusion criteria to find alternative control groups depending on
project requirements.
Risk factor profile of participants who are considered 'Healthy
Controls', n = 131
| Measurement * |
Mean ± SD |
| Age (years) |
43 ± 12.2 |
| Blood pressure
(mmHg) |
113/71 ±
6/6 |
| Glucose (mM) |
4.8 ± 0.5 |
| BMI (kg/m2) |
21.9
± 1.9 |
| Total cholesterol (mM) |
4.4 ±
1.63 |
| LDL cholesterol (mM) |
2.5 ±
0.62 |
| HDL cholesterol (mM) |
1.5 ±
0.37 |
| Triglycerides (mM) |
0.9 ±
0.74 |
*Recorded / measured at time of sample collection.
How can samples be accessed?
-
Contact the Biobank Manager to
discuss your project and the samples and clinical data required.
-
Obtain a Biobank Access Request
Form from the Biobank Manager once you have a clear plan, and
prepare the required attachments (to clearly outline your project) in a
single Word document.
-
If you want clinical data relating to the samples
requested, you will need to clearly define the clinical characteristics
required by completing the Biobank Fields Required
forms, obtained from the Biobank Manager.
-
Email all the paperwork to the
Biobank Manager.
-
The Biobank Steering Group
will review your request. This can be done relatively quickly unless
further clarification is required.
-
Once the Steering Group has approved your project,
you will be assigned a Biobank project number.
-
Ethics review can occur concurrently with Biobank
Steering Group review; however, all approvals must be confirmed before
the samples and/or data can be released.
Biobank rules of use:
Samples and data must be used
according to the
Biobank Rules developed by the Steering Group. For researchers external
to Baker IDI, a Material Transfer Agreement must be signed before samples
can be released.
Ethics
Ethics approval from The Alfred
Hospital Ethics Committee is required for all projects that propose to use
Biobank samples.
-
For de-identified samples this can generally be done
using the
application for ethical review of low risk project. Applicants must
read the
Low Risk Guide to make sure that their project fits into the low
risk category. Applications utilising this route of approval are
assessed 'out of session' by two members of the Ethics Committee and
approval is usually quicker than a full ethics application.
-
If your project requires identifiable or potentially
identifiable information, a full ethics
application will be required.
-
The Ethics Committee may wish to see evidence that
you have discussed your project with the Biobank Manager. An email
printout will usually suffice. The Biobank Manager must review and sign
section 1.40 of
Module 1 for all full ethics submissions.
Researchers often ask why
additional ethics approval is required given that the Biobank has the
participants' consent for their sample to be used in research. The main
reason is to ensure that researchers using Biobank samples have considered
whether the outcome of their research will have any health implications for
the participants who supplied the samples. When participants provided
consent, they were told that the Ethics Committee may decide to offer them
information about research findings "if research uncovers significant
information specific to your health".
The Ethics Committee therefore
needs to see evidence that researchers have taken this into account when
designing their study and that researchers understand that this information
must be fed back to the Biobank and the Ethics Committee through progress
reports.
Fee-for-sample
To help the Biobank recover the
costs associated with collecting, processing and long-term storage of
samples, the following costing system has been developed based on the type
of samples/data required. This revised pricing structure provides a reduced
'per sample' price for studies using large cohorts (over 100 samples).
| Sample
type |
Price
(2010) |
| |
Samples 1-100 |
Samples 101+ |
| Plasma |
$94 |
$44 |
| Serum |
$95 |
$45 |
| DNA |
$101 |
$48 |
| RNA |
$107 |
$54 |
The Biobank
Steering Group
Melissa Barber (Biobank Manager)
Tony Dart
Jaye Chin-Dusting
Jeremy Jowett
David Kaye
Bronwyn Kingwell
Peter Meikle
Simon Stewart
Contact
Dr Melissa Barber
Biobank & HDI
Manager
Phone: 8532 1631
Melissa.Barber@bakeridi.edu.au