Full programme
The full programme, along with a downloadable copy, will be available here shortly.
This online version is continually updated throughout the Congress.
Abstract books
Full abstracts will be available as PDF books. Downloads: Posters and Orals.
Tuesday 13 May
| Time | Title |
| 08:30 | Registration opens |
| 09:30-11:30 | Workshop related local visits |
| 09:30-12:30 | BBMRI-ERIC and ESBB internal meetings |
| 13:00-15:00 | Workshops one to four |
| 15:00-15:30 | Refreshments |
| 15:30-17:30 | Workshops one to four |
Wednesday 14 May
| Time | Title |
| 08:00 | Registration opens |
| 09:00-10:30 | Opening ceremony |
| 10:30-11:00 | Refreshments |
| 11:00-12:30 | Plenary – keynote one Prof. Walter Ricciardi, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Rome – The need for courageous leadership in science and health in challenging times Chairs: Prof. Agnieszka Matera-Witkiewicz, Wroclaw Medical University and Prof. Marialuisa Lavitrano, University of Milano Bicocca |
| 12:30-14:00 | Lunch and exhibition Corporate workshop Pitch your innovative idea Vendor tour |
| 14:00-15:30 | Parallel sessions one 3A: One Health: Non-human biobanking Chairs – Mag. (FH). Cornelia Stumptner, BBMRI.at and Markus Ulrich, Helmholtz Institute for One Health SoA Speaker: Dr. Dominic Bläsing, Helmholtz Institute for One Health – Establishing One Health exploratories: A holistic approach to integrative health monitoring Dr. Davide Faggionato, DSMZ – How to “do” the Nagoya Protocol: common misconceptions and practical advice for access and benefit-sharing compliance Joséphine Uldry, MSc, Swiss Biobanking Platform – Advancing One Health and Non-Human Biobanking: The Future of the Swiss Network Sylvia Bruneau, PhD, INRAE – The Biological Resource Centers for Environment of the French Research Infrastructure RARe Q&A Session 3B: Biobanks in big data research and AI Chairs – Dr. Heimo Müller, BBMRI-ERIC and Dipl.-Ing. Roland Leiminger, ESBB SoA Speaker: Prof. Dr. Peter Hufnagl, Charité – paper title tbc Prof. Agnieszka Matera-Witkiewicz, Wroclaw Medical University – Biobanks as strategic tools in the concept of national digital medicine centres network establishment in Poland Johanna Mäkelä, PhD, FINBB – Federated research infrastructure: Interoperable trusted research environments for researchers by biobanks Prof. Soichi Ogishima, Tohoku Medical Megabank Organization – Emerging challenges of Biobank Network Japan: transformation biobank through AI technologies Q&A Session 3C: Biobank automation: Challenges, opportunities and solutions Chairs – Dr. Fatima Qafoud, Qatar Biobank and Dr. Loes Linsen, University Hospitals Leuven SoA Speaker: Enrico Almici, PhD, Antares Vision Group – Biobank management automation: Challenges, opportunities & solutions Dr. Andreas Hörlein, Helmholtz Munich – The Central Biorepository of the NAKO health study Hilde Laeremans, Lifelines Biobank – How automation can make biobanking an assembly line Dr. Catherine Goh, Revvity – High-throughput nucleic acid extraction in biobanking: Performance assessment of the chemagic™ Prime™ System in large-scale population studies Dr. Hélène Blanché, Fondation Jean Dausset-CEPH – Improving blood phase separation on a Fluent liquid handling system (Tecan) Q&A Session 3D: Empowering the next generation: Education and training in biobanking Chairs – Dr. Sara Nußbeck, BBMRI.de and Prof. h.c. Karine Sargsyan, Medical University Of Graz SoA Speaker: Dr. Peggy Manders, Radboud Biobank – Future in biobanking: A teaching course for biomedical students Valeria Di Cola, PhD, University of Geneva – Advancing Biobanking Education: Updates and Insights from the new CAS in Biobanking a successful program designed in Switzerland open to an international audience Michèle Tixier-Boichard, PhD, INRAE – Updating domestic animal biobanks on cellular models – A training workshop Dr. Olga Tzortzatou-Nanopoulou, BRFAA – Developing tools for education in biobanking: the “SCIence outreach: The example of BIObanks in Europe” ERASMUS+ project Q&A Session |
| 15:30-16:00 | Refreshments, exhibition and posters |
| 16:00-17:00 | Posters: session one |
| 17:00-17:30 | Podium discussion: Industry & academic co-creation towards personalised medicine in light of global challenges |
| 17:30-19:00 | Parallel sessions two 4A: Clinical biobanks: Bridging research and patient care Chairs – Dr. Christine Joye, Swiss Biobanking Platform and Dr. Rocio Aguilar-Quesada, Andalusian Public Health System Biobank SoA Speaker: Dr. Tilman Pfeffer, DZIF Tissue Bank – Infectious diseases tissue biobanking and biodata management of the German Center for Infection Research – a key infrastructure for multiple research approaches Dr. Marwa Eldeeb, Qatar Biobank- Advancing personalized medicine and public health: The role and impact of Qatar Biobank Sarah Preisler, PhD, Novo Nordisk – Biobanking from a pharmaceutical company perspective Dr. Jose Antonio Lopez-Guerrero, Instituto Valenciano de Oncología Foundation – Five years of insights from the GEICO Registry (GEICO 81-T): A virtual gynecological cancer clinical registry with decentralized biospecimen collection Q&A Session 4B: Navigating the technical hurdles of the upcoming European data spaces Chairs – Dr. Petr Holub, BBMRI-ERIC and Dr. Ricard Martinez Martinez, University of Valencia Q&A Session 4C: Implementing and securing quality control in biobanking Chairs – Dr. Teresa Escámez, Biomedical Research Institute of Murcia-Pascual Parrilla and Dr. Olga Kofanova, Integrated BioBank of Luxembourg SoA Speaker: Dr. Ronny Baber, University Leipzig Medical Biobank – Enhancing biobanking quality: Validation and verification strategies with insights from the Leipzig Medical Biobank Sven Heiling, Universitätsklinikum Jena – Three years of proficiency testing in liquid biobanking: A proven tool for identifying variations in process and sample quality Mª Isabel Cortell Granero, Instituto Valenciano de Oncología Foundation – Enhancing biobank practices: Insights from EQA participation at the IVO Biobank PD Dr. Joerg Geiger, Interdisciplinary Bank of Biomaterials and Data Würzburg (ibdw) – Monitoring of the cold-chain of deep-frozen samples Dr. Laura Valentina Renna, BioCor Biobank – Flow cytometry as a promising tool for sample quality control in biobanking Q&A Session 4D: Balancing ethics and innovation: ELSI in biobanking Chairs – Prof. Marialuisa Lavitrano, University of Milano Bicocca and Dr. Valentina Colcelli, National Research Council (CNR) SoA Speaker: Dr. Sara Casati, National Research Council of Italy – Co-creating the informative BBMRI.it “ecosystem” for the next-generation biobank. Integrated consent matrices, as the backbone of the BBMRI app, full recognition of the biobank as guarantor of rights, principles and processes, digitized publicity of biobank activities Dr. Melanie Goisauf, BBMRI-ERIC – An embedded ethics approach to trustworthy AI for transformative healthcare PD Dr. Joerg Geiger, Interdisciplinary Bank of Biomaterials and Data Würzburg (ibdw) – Electronic Consent – the key to compliant, secure and efficient biobanking Deborah Mascalzoni, PhD, Eurac Research – How will the new WHO and WMA guidance policies impact biobanking, individuals and communities Q&A Session |
| 19:00 | Welcome reception |
Thursday 15 May
| Time | Title |
| 08:00 | Registration opens |
| 09:00-10:30 | Parallel sessions three 5A: Rare disease biobank insights Chairs – Dr. Sissy Kolyva, Hellenic Pasteur Institute and Dr. Hélène Blanché, Fondation Jean Dausset-CEPH Dr. Liliana Virginia Siede, University of Buenos Aires – Biobanks and rare diseases in social networks. Perspective from convergent ethics – Leading case 2023-2025 Roseline Favresse, EURORDIS – Rare disease moonshot – Scaling up public-private partnerships to accelerate research in rare diseases Roger Snijder, Leiden University Medical Center – Gap analysis of 4-year data in the Dutch Dystrophinopathy Database Jovana Komazec, PhD, IMGGE, University of Belgrade – Advancing the IMGGE RD Biobank through BRIDGING-RD Project: Achieving full interoperability of genetic and phenotypic data to enhance participation in transnational research and innovation for human health Q&A Session 5B: Ensuring data security in biobanks: Strategies and best practices Chairs – Dr. Georg Göbel, Innsbruck Medical University and Blazej Marciniak, Biobank Lab University of Lodz Q&A Session 5C: Samples fit-for-purpose: Optimisation of pre-analytics Chairs – Dr. Daiva Dabkeviciene, Lithuanian National Cancer Institute and Peter Riegman, PhD, Erasmus MC SoA Speaker: Paola Gasperini, PhD, University of Trento – Standardization of blood collection and processing in biobanking for EV research Dr. Hilde Brouwers, Erasmus MC – Shortcomings in scientific studies assessing the fit-for-purpose of biobank biomaterials: the example of EDTA plasma for ccfDNA Dr. Frank Fleischmann, Ludwig-Maximilians Universität München – Pre-analytical workflows for robust infrared profiling in blood-based disease diagnostics Daniel Alba-Olano, PhD, Spanish National Cancer Research Centre – Standardizing saliva collection: Key pre-analytical factors for reliable research Q&A Session 7D: Patient-centric biobanking: Strategies for engagement and participation Chairs – Dr. Eric Vermeulen, BBMRI-ERIC Stakeholder Forum: Patient and Citizens’ Pillar and Deborah Mascalzoni, PhD, Eurac Research SoA Speaker: Mª Isabel Cortell Granero, Instituto Valenciano de Oncología Foundation – Digital Transformation in Biobanking: The Implementation of eConsent at the Valencian Institute of Oncolgy (IVO) Biobank Daniel Alba-Olano, PhD, Spanish National Cancer Research Centre – The challenge of building cohorts beyond hospital walls Miriam Beusink, Health RI – Evaluation and lessons learned regarding the ABOARD cohort panel: a citizen panel advising on an Alzheimer’s disease cohort study Isabelle Budin-Ljosne, PhD, Norwegian Institute of Public Health – What motivates (or demotivates) young adults to participate in longitudinal cohort studies Q&A Session |
| 10:30-11:00 | Refreshments |
| 11:00-12:30 | Plenary – keynote two Prof. Dr. Lili Milani, University of Tartu – Bringing the benefits of biobanking closer to the people Chairs: Prof. Dr. Jens Habermann, BBMRI-ERIC and Dipl.-Ing. Roland Leiminger, ESBB Q&A Session |
| 12:30-14:00 | Lunch and exhibition Corporate workshop Pitch your innovative idea Vendor tour |
| 14:00-15:30 | Parallel sessions four 7A: Green biobanking: Paving the path to sustainable practices Chairs – Dr. Jörg Hamann, Amsterdam UMC and Rolf Morselt, Askion GmbH SoA Speaker: Monika Valjan, MA, Biobank Graz – Can biobanks be greener? Dr. Saba Abdulghani, BBMRI-ERIC – Green biobanking: gaps and challenges Werner Strasser, fragmentiX Storage Solutions – Quantum-proofing your data: The future of cybersecurity for biobanks and scientific data Dr. Luisa Minghetti, Istituto Superiore di Sanità – VIVA: A cutting-edge biobank for translational research and sustainable development Q&A Session 7B: Data flows in healthcare integrated biobanking Chairs – Mgr. Zdenka Dudová, PhD, Masaryk Memorial Cancer Institute and Dr. Daniel Brucker, Interdisciplinary Biobank and Database Frankfurt SoA Speaker: Dr. Mindaugas Morkūnas, Vilnius Santaros Klinikos Biobank – Information System Architecture of the Lithuanian National Biobanking Infrastructure Ines Santiuste, Instituto de Investigación Valdecilla – Integration of the Biobank Information Management System (BIMS) with the Electronic Health Record (EHR) Antonella Cruoglio, MSc / Alice Massacci, National Research Council (CNR) – An extract, transform, load foundation for biobank data interoperability Dr. Michael Neumann, Interdisciplinary Bank of Biomaterials and Data Würzburg (ibdw) – Electronic order entry and biobank registration for tissue samples Q&A Session 7E: EP PerMed – Unlocking biobanks for personalised medicine Chairs – Gianni D’Errico, PhD, Toscana Life Sciences and Dr. Christine Hasenauer, DLR Projektträger SoA Speaker: Prof. Kristian Hveem, Biobank Norway Prof. Dr. Lili Milani, University of Tartu – Biobanking and personalised medicine Flash poster presentation – Poster Flash Presentation canSERV – providing cutting edge cancer research services across Europe and establishing a European Molecular Tumour Board Network Flash Poster Presentation – Enriching the biobanks collections by refined data returned from previous projects – case study of T-cell receptor sequence data Round table discussion – Moderator: Andrea Frosini, PhD, TLS; Panelists: Prof. Kristian Hveem, Prof. Dr. Lili Milani, Dr. Luisa Minghetti, National Institute of Health. Further details to be announced. Q&A Session 5D: Securing the future of biobanks: New collaboration models for sustainability Chairs – Prof. Nikolai Pace, Dwarnabio, University Of Malta and Dr. Outi Törnwall, BC Platforms SoA Speaker: Dr. Peggy Manders, Radboud Biobank – Towards sustainable biobanking by increasing researchers’ financial contribution Dr. Christine Joye, Swiss Biobanking Platform – Swiss Biobanking Platform’s switch from a service development to a service utilization platform Prof. Dr. Manon Huizing, UZA – Developing a cost visualization and calculation tool for sustainable biobanking by the diverse biobank organizations in Belgium RNDR. Katerina Nováková, Masaryk Memorial Cancer Institute – Enhancing sustainability through industry collaboration: Insights from the Czech Experience Q&A Session |
| 15:30-16:00 | Refreshments, exhibition and posters |
| 16:00-17:00 | Posters: session two |
| 17:00-18:00 | Parallel sessions five 8A: The transformative role of biobanks in public health Chairs – Dr. Zisis Kozlaidis, BBMRI.IARC and Prof. Dr. Nahla Afifi, Qatar Biobank SoA Speakers: Nicole Großkinsky, NAKO, Dr. Sabrina Schmitt, NAKO and Dr. Katharina Hofmann, Universitätsklinikum Heidelberg – Biobanking in the German National Cohort (NAKO): A pivotal resource for epidemiological research + The Tumor Tissue Bank of the German National Cohort (NAKO): Pilot of a centralized epidemiologically networked biobanking Prof. Dr. Estrid Høgdall, Herlev-Gentofte Hospital – p53 protein expression, TP53 gene mutations, and in silico p53 activity as prognostic markers for ovarian cancer Even Birkeland, PhD, Norwegian Institute of Public Health – From multi-omics to better health – Managing the biological data resource in the Norwegian Mother, Father and Child Cohort Study (MoBa) Dr. Fatima Qafoud, Qatar Biobank – Bridging continents, advancing health: Qatar Biobank’s vision for a new era in precision health Q&A Session 8B: Best practices for biobanking data integration Chairs – Kim Vande Loock, PhD, BBMRI.be and Dr. Ayat Salman, Canadian Primary Care Sentinel Surveillance Network SoA Speaker: Janet Vos, PhD, Health-RI – Health-RI, the federated Dutch national research infrastructure for data-driven health and life sciences Dr. Viktor Molnár, Semmelweis University – Semmelweis Federated Platform: Privacy-preserving integration of biobank and genomic data Dr. Sara Casati, National Research Council of Italy and Francesca Frexia, PhD, CRS4 – A digital, standards-based ELSI metadata approach to consent in Italian biobanking Dr. Mandy Vogel, University Leipzig – The case of and for longitudinal cohort studies Q&A Session 8C: Special samples, special needs. Chairs – Dr. Anna Beskow, Uppsala Biobank and Dr. Micheline Sanderson, Stellenbosch University SoA Speaker: Alessandro Cutarelli, PhD, University of Trento – Establishing a new hiPSC Biobank for disease modelling and drug discovery: Standardization and quality control processes Alice Bernardi, University of Bologna – Self-assessment survey for microbiome analysis: Ensuring quality and standardization in biobanks Dr. Sara Casati, National Research Council of Italy, A BBMRI biobank, as a third-party, guarantor for the institutional biobanking of Old Collections The BBMRI.it community, in dialogue with the Privacy Authority Alessandra Canazza, Golgi-Cenci Foundation – The Golgi Cenci Brain Banking protocol: An effective methodology for brain sampling and collection Q&A Session 8D: Connecting forces: Effective stakeholder management Chairs – Dr. Annelies Debucquoy, BBMRI.be – Belgian Cancer Registry and Rosita Kammler, ETOP IBCSG Partners Foundation SoA Speaker: Anne-Marie Vangsted, Statens Serum Institut – Building public trust: Informing 1.3 million Danes about their stored samples Katia Pozyuchenko, MSc, Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center – Biobank outreach: Key challenges and approaches Verena Huth, MA, German Biobank Node – Fostering biobank sustainability and patient participation through collaborative advocacy Dr. Eric Vermeulen, BBMRI-ERIC Stakeholder Forum: Patient and Citizens’ Pillar – Guidance for public involvement and engagement (PPIE) in biobanking Q&A Session |
| 18:00-19:00 | Closed meetings |
| 19:00 | Networking dinner * |
* Separate ticket booked when registering
Friday 16 May
| Time | Title |
| 08:00 | Registration opens |
| 09:00-10:30 | 9A: Ethics Café Chairs – Dr. Peggy Manders, Radboud Biobank and Prof. Dr. Roland Jahns, Interdisciplinary Bank of Biomaterials and Data Würzburg (ibdw) Q&A Session 7C: Innovative quality concepts Chairs – Prof. Monica Forni, UNIBO Microbiome Biobank – University of Bologna and Dr. Annemieke De Wilde, MSc, Belgian Cancer Registry – Bbmri.be SoA Speakers: Joséphine Uldry, MSc, Swiss Biobanking Platform, Nhutuyen Nguyen, MSc, German Biobank Node and Prof. Agnieszka Matera-Witkiewicz, Wroclaw Medical University – Collaborative initiative to a European quality manual for biobanks Elisa Cantarelli, PhD, IRCCS Ospedale San Raffaele – Management of human samples for observational and interventional studies in a hospital-integrated biobank: A dynamic framework with ISO 20387, GCP/GCLP standards and relevant legislation Dr. Olga Kofanova, Integrated BioBank of Luxembourg – Ensuring biological sample quality through ACQA: A novel biobank internal quality program Dr. Esperanza Garcia Molina, Biomedical Research Institute of Murcia-Pascual Parrilla – A complete turnaround in biobank management: Innovations and strategies Q&A Session |
| 10:30-12:00 | Brunch, exhibition and posters |
| 12:00-13:30 | Parallel sessions six 10A: Organisational profiles Chairs – Prof. Dr. Mária Judit Molnár, Semmelweis University and Prof. Dr. Elke Smits, Antwerp University Hospital SoA Speaker: Sandra Nanyonga, , Université Côte d’Azur – Pan-African Biobanking Network (PABNet): Strengthening the African biobanking community Natascha Perales Selva, Biobank Antwerp – Bridging departments: A standardized form to streamline sample management across the hospital Manuela Pausan, PhD, BBMRI-ERIC – canSERV – Providing cutting edge cancer research services across Europe Dr. Luca Battistelli, IRST – The importance of a functioning disaster recovery plan: The successful experience of IRCCS Istituto Romagnolo per lo Studio dei Tumori (IRST) “Dino Amadori”, Meldola, Italy during the 2023 flood Q&A Session 10B: Ensuring excellence: Elevating data quality in biobanking Chairs – Dr. Sabine Bavamian, Swiss Biobanking Platform and Dr. Eleni Fthenou, Qatar Biobank SoA Speaker: RNDr. Rudolf Wittner, BBMRI-ERIC – Common Provenance Framework and the ISO 23494 Provenance Information Model for Biological Material and Data Teresa Botta Orfila, PhD, Biobank of the Hospital Clinic of Barcelona – Applicability of project management tools in reviewing ISO 20387 compliance for biobanking Nina Jansoone, UZA – Enhancing BIMS to improve registration rates and data quality Roger Snijder, Leiden University Medical Center and Dr. Yvonne Meijer-Krom, Leiden University Medical Center – FISMA for high quality and interoperable real-world data on Dystrophinopathies – FAIR from the start: From concept to reality Elodie Ristorcelli, PhD, CHUV and Marc Vandelaer – HORUS Biobank Project: An innovative way to support university hospital biobanks in their journey to enhancing sample and data quality Q&A Session 10C: Samples ready for multi-omics research Chairs – Prof. Radka Kaneva, Medical University of Sofia and Dr. Ronny Baber, University Leipzig – Leipzig Medical Biobank Hou-Wei Chu, Taiwan Biobank – Unraveling complex disease etiology: Insights from the Taiwan Biobank’s multiomics data Dr. Noomi O. Gregersen, Genetic Biobank of the Faroe Islands – Multi-omics resources from the Faroe Islands: The FarGen 2 Project Dr. Diana Drettwan, lifespin GmbH – On the road to diabetes: How biobanking-backed metabolomic digital twinning improves risk assessment and early diagnostics. Martina Betti, IFO-IRE Cancer Research Institute – Enhancing multi-omics data interpretation and robustness through AI-driven digital pathology Dr. Giuseppe De Palma, IRCCS Istituto Tumori “Giovanni Paolo II” – BIOMIS the Italian human microbiota biobank ready to contribute to meta-omics applications Q&A Session 10D: Emerging EU regulations unveiled: Latest ELSI developments and national perspectives Chairs – Dr. Vita Rovite, Latvian Biomedical Research and Study Centre and Anne Costello, Health Research Board SoA Speaker: Dr. Pieter Moons, Biobank Antwerp – Interplay between the Belgian biobank legislation and EU level CTR, MDR/IVDR regulations Irene Schlünder, BBMRI-ERIC – Challenges for biobanks under the EHDS Regulations; introduction of opt-out as a standard form of individuals’ participation in the use of their data Erdina Ene, MSc, BBMRI-ERIC – EHDS implications for biobanks as data holders and data users Dr. Peggy Manders, Radboud Biobank – European Health Data Space – The current state of affairs in the Netherlands Q&A Session |
| 13:30-14:00 | Awards and closing ceremony Including the BBMRI-ERIC Quality Label Awards |