Services

The Partners Biobank offers the following biobanking and sample processing services:

DNA Extraction from Whole Blood and Saliva

We are able to accept fresh or frozen whole blood for DNA extraction. Frozen blood or blood that has been held in cold storage for greater than five days post draw will be processed under a special protocol to enhance yields. Samples of extracted DNA are subject to QC by 260/280 OD ratio and absorbance at 260nm, as well as picogreen quantification.

Specimen Requirement

• Blood – 5-10mL whole blood in Purple top (K3EDTA) vacutainer vial.
• Saliva – For best results collect in Oragene kit.

Reporting of Results

Extractions will be completed within 5 business days upon receipt of sample. All data will be available via GIGPAD. Investigators (or those listed as contacts) will have access to reports that will include the sample ID entered by the research team, the Partners Biobank facility ID, the status of the sample, the concentration, and volume.

RNA Extraction from Whole Blood with PaxGene Tubes

We do not provide the PaxGene Blood Collection tubes. These may be purchased from Qiagen. We will take the PaxGene tubes submitted to us for processing and provide the service to extract RNA, provide a Bioanalyzer QC check for the sample and 260nm absorbance concentration reading. Extracted RNA samples are stored in 0.5ml tubes at -80°C immediately after the RNA is QC'd.

Each PaxGene Blood tube will hold 5 ml of blood and on average yields about 5 ug of RNA from a properly collected tube. According to the manufacturer's data: "Blood RNA Tubes are intended for the collection of whole blood and stabilization of cellular RNA for up to three days at 18-25°C or up to five days at 2-8°C. Currently available data shows stabilization of cellular RNA for up to 8 years at –20°C or -70°C".

IMPORTANT: Once chilled or frozen the PaxGene Tube must be transported in a manner to maintain temperature and not be warmed. Failure to ensure tubes maintain temperature after storage at 4°C or freezing during handling and transport will adversely affect RNA yield and integrity.

Specimen Requirement
Blood – 5mL whole blood in Paxgene Tube (manufacturer Qiagen)

Reporting of Results
Extractions will be completed within 10 business days upon receipt of sample. All data will be available via GIGPAD. Investigators (or those listed as contacts) will have access to reports that will include the sample ID entered by the research team, the Partners Biobank facility ID, the status of the sample, the concentration, and volume.

Plasma/Serum Isolation

Approximately 2-4ml of plasma or serum will be isolated from each 10ml tube of blood. Samples delivered to our lab are processed as quickly as possible upon arrival and completion of accessioning. Plasma/Serum isolates will be aliquoted in 1ml volume and stored in –80°C freezers.

Sample Requirements

• Plasma – 10mL whole blood in “Purple top” (K3EDTA) vacutainer vial.
• Serum – 10mL whole blood in “Red top” (no anticoagulant) vacutainer vial.

Reporting of Results
Plasma isolations will be completed within 1 business day upon receipt of sample. All data will be available via GIGPAD. Investigators (or those listed as contacts) will have access to reports that will include the sample ID entered by the research team, the Partners Biobank facility ID, and the status of the sample.

Sample Plating

Samples will be arrayed into a 96 well plate format using an automated liquid handling robot and normalized to the requested concentration. The first plate of each array created is considered a "Master Plate" (94 samples/plate). All partial plates (<94 samples) will be charged the price of a full plate. We will visually inspect the plates to ensure volume is present in each well. The plate record will be made available to the researcher (or those listed as contacts) in Excel format along with the sample IDs provided by the researcher, and final concentrations quantified by picogreen

Sample Storage and Retrieval

We can retrieve samples from storage from your supplied requests via Gateway for Integration of Genomic-Proteomic Applications and Data (GIGPAD).

*Sample storage fees are applied on a quarterly basis.   

Tissue Extraction

Please contact PPMCentralBiobank@partners.org for additional information.

Ordering

Please visit our Accounts and Ordering page to place a GIGPAD batch order. For quotes and customer inquiries, please contact PPMCentralBiobank@partners.org.