[Standardization of Biobank and Potential of IVD Industries to Utilize Biospecimens].

Abstract

Many biobanks that have stored human clinical biospecimens have been established in Japan since 2005. Those biospecimens were mainly used in academia to perform basic research. The use of those biospeci- mens by industries, especially pharmaceutical or in vitro diagnostic companies, was restricted for ethical rea- sons. In this review, we discuss the importance of the standardization of the quality of biospecimens and workflow at biobanks for the utilization of specimens, and the possibility and issues regarding specimen use by industries.