BBMRI.nl
Netherlands (Member)

Contact: Jörg Hamann (MC representative)

Website: https://www.health-ri.nl/over-ons/organisatie/biobanken-collecties

The Dutch Node of BBMRI has been established through subsequent programmes sponsored by the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO). Between 2008-2014, BBMRI.nl set up a collaboration between existing clinical and population biobanks in the Netherlands and formed the link to BBMRI-ERIC. BBMRI.nl aimed at enrichment and harmonisation of Dutch biobanks including data management and analysis, laying legal, social, and ethical foundations and to improve access to and interoperability between biobanks.

Between 2015-2019, the focus moved towards making the infrastructure for joint biobank activities in the Netherlands future-proof. After a bridging period, parts of the BBMRI.nl portfolio have been integrated, together with the Parelsnoer initiative for clinical biobanks, into the national health & life sciences data infrastructure Health-RI, which receives funding for the years 2023-2029 from a National Growth Funds of the Dutch government. BBMRI.nl operates mainly within the Health-RI pillar Biobank & Collections and applies the organisational structure of Health-RI with a national hub and regional nodes centered at the Dutch academic hospitals.

BBMRI.nl facilitates the harmonised collection, management, and availability of health data, biological samples, and images originating from a wide range of registries, cohorts, data banks, and biobanks.

BBMRI.nl focusses on three main activities:

1. Promoting harmonisation by (further) developing and implementing procedures, guidelines, and standards for biological samples, image and associated data collections based on evidence and (inter)national alignment;
2. Providing support by (co-) developing, implementing, advertising, and supporting Health-RI infrastructure and services that enable the finding and sharing of biological samples, images, and associated data;
3. Distributing knowledge with added value for the biobanks and collections via websites, contribution to current discussions, and gatherings of the community, such as the annual Biobanks & Collections Day.

The goals of BBMRI.nl are realised in close collaboration with other ESFRIs. Health-RI envisions to establish and manage an ESFRI-overarching service portfolio (a so-called “house of services”) to support health & life sciences researchers in the Netherlands, which is based on the developed infrastructural solutions from these individual ESFRIs, including BBMRI, ELIXIR, EATRIS, and EuroBioImaging.