Biobank at Sechenov University in Moscow

contributed by Vladimir Belyaev (Head of Biobank of Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University)

On April 10^h, 2019 Yann Joly (Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences (CAHS), Research Director of the Centre of Genomics and Policy at McGill University, Montreal, Canada) and Daniel Simeon-Dubach (Chair of ISBER Standards Committee / biobank consultant, Switzerland), Sergey Anisimov (ISBER regional ambassador to Russia / CSO National BioService), and Vitali Proutski (CEO National BioService, St.-Petersburg, Russia) visited the biobank at Sechenov University in Moscow. Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University (widely known as Sechenov University) represents the oldest, largest and leading Russian medical school. It was first established January 25, 1755 as a Medical Faculty of Imperial Moscow University by a decree of Empress Elizabeth of Russia. Many distinguished Russian physicians studied, worked, taught and established their scientific schools here, including N.I.Pirogov, S.P.Botkin, N.V. Sklifosovsky and I.M.Sechenov. Old traditions of medical education founded in Imperial Moscow University are preserved in Sechenov University, where expert specialists are now trained using modern digital technologies and XXI century education standards.

Although Sechenov University was founded 260 years ago and is the oldest medical university in Russia the biobank began its work only 18 months ago. The mission of Sechenov University biobank is to provide the infrastructure for the controlled collection and storage of human biological specimens for scientific and medical research needs. Its vision is the foundation of the biological resource center, which will allow conducting the research at the international level using Russian and foreign biological specimens. The main collections consist of blood, plasma and tissue specimens related to head and neck cancer, breast cancer, colorectal cancer and endocrine system diseases.   

The biobank is well equipped with ten liquid nitrogen tanks and three -80°C freezers. It also has access to three completely separated class B (GMP) labs. The biobank is almost entirely funded by the Russian government. It is integrated into the Institute for Regenerative Medicine at Sechenov.

Under the leadership of Vladimir Belyaev samples and data are collected in the all clinics of Sechenov University in Moscow (3,000 beds, 90,000 in-patients and 1.5 million out-patient visits annually). The main focus of the biobank is to provide samples and data to the researchers in regenerative medicine and for research in personalized medicine. This infrastructure and its support of biomedical research should enable Sechenov University be become one of the top 100 Medical Universities in the world within the next few years.