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Review
. 2020 Dec;18(6):503-510.
doi: 10.1089/bio.2020.0079. Epub 2020 Oct 8.

Opportunities and Risks for Research Biobanks in the COVID-19 Era and Beyond

Daniel Simeon-Dubach  1 , Marianne K Henderson  2
Affiliations
Review

Opportunities and Risks for Research Biobanks in the COVID-19 Era and Beyond

Daniel Simeon-Dubach et al. Biopreserv Biobank. 2020 Dec.

Abstract

The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, which caused a global outbreak of COVID-19 disease, has been a crisis of extraordinary proportions, causing serious impacts for research and public health. Biobanks have played a key important role in understanding the disease and response. In our article we will highlight the opportunities and risks of biobanks during and after the pandemic. The different aspects of safety and sustainability have and will be the main challenges for biobanks. Furthermore, the role of biobanks in biomedical research and public health has been emphasized as well as opportunities that have arisen for their participation in research.

Keywords: COVID-19; best practices; biobank; laboratory safety; opportunities and risks; sustainability.

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Conflict of interest statement

No conflicting financial interests exist.

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