In Australia, we have a high-quality, active biobanking community that supports a wide range of research. The 2021 National Research Infrastructure Roadmap acknowledged the strength of the Australian biobanking ecosystem but highlighted the need for enhanced coordination to maximize the impact of our biobanks.
In this session, we are honoured to welcome Prof. Jens Habermann, Director-General of BBMRI-ERIC, to share insights on BBMRI-ERIC's structure and outcomes. Additionally, a brief overview of currently Australian biobanking landscapes, national research infrastructure, and the Australasian Biospecimen Network Association (ABNA) will be presented. This will be followed by a panel discussion and Q&A, where we’ll explore what a fit-for-purpose national biobanking strategy might look like for Australia.
Prof Jens Habermann’s Bio:
Professor Jens K. Habermann, M.D., PH.D., is Director General of BBMRI-ERIC (Biobanking and Biomolecular Resources Research Infrastructure – European Research Infrastructure Consortium) since September 2020. He is on leave of absence from the University of Lübeck as Head of the Section of Translational Surgical Oncology and Biobanking and as Head of ICB-L (Interdisciplinary Center for Biobanking-Lübeck). He obtained his M.D. training at the Medical University of Lübeck (Lübeck, Germany), received his Ph.D. at the Cancer Center Karolinska, Karolinska Institute (Stockholm, Sweden) and a Postdoctoral Fellowship at the National Cancer Institute, NIH (Bethesda, USA). As board certified specialist in human genetics, Prof. Habermann combines clinics, biobanking, and translational (cancer) research to optimize precision medicine.
If you missed the event, you can access a recording of the Panel Discussion (from our YouTube page) here: