Under the leadership of the German Biobank Node (GBN), eleven German biobanks and two IT expert centres have merged to form the German Biobank Alliance (GBA) to make biomaterials and associated data available for (inter)national biomedical research. The alliance partners are establishing joint quality standards and building a networked IT infrastructure. GBN and GBA are funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF).
Taking into account the interests of all stakeholders involved, GBN also advocates the concerns of biobanks beyond the biobanking scene. Moreover, GBN lobbies for biobanking on the European level by representing German interests in the biobank network BBMRI-ERIC. Thus, GBN creates standards for the further development and quality assurance of biobanking in Germany and Europe.
“GBN pursues the mission of networking biobanks in Germany so that biobank collectives can contribute to biomedical research. This will considerably accelerate the development of new diagnostics and therapeutics.”
Prof. Dr. Michael Hummel
GBN coordinator
Our mission statement
- The German Biobank Node (GBN) is the umbrella organisation for biobanking in Germany.
- We bring German biobanks together and represent their interests within the European research infrastructure for biobanking, BBMRI-ERIC. Public funding enables us to operate independently of economic interests.
- We strive to advance biomedical research with sustainable “next-generation biobanking”. Our members make quality-assured samples and data available to the network for this purpose.
- We work closely with our members to harmonise quality standards, establish a networked IT structure, and develop training for biobank staff.
- We exchange information with different biobanking stakeholders – from researchers to patients – on an interdisciplinary basis and communicate our findings transparently.
- Cooperation within our network is characterised by teamwork, mutual trust and collegial support.
- With our commitment to biobanking, we foster scientific progress on the path to precision medicine.
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