Purpose & Overview

The “Clinical Samples Reception and Processing Unit” is part of the pMedGR infrastructure. The unit provides investigators with specialized pre-analytical processing for a variety of biospecimen types, to accommodate analysis of their products in the advanced technology platforms of pMedGR.

The unit collects high quality samples of normal and diseased human material (e.g., whole blood, cellular blood or tissue components, bone marrow, plasma, benign and tumor tissue, cell cultures) and processes them to products which qualify (through quality indicators-justification) for next generation sequencing, gene expression analysis, mass cytometry, single cell genetic analysis, proteomics and metabolomics.

Functions 

• Supporting for set up of study-specific design needed for biospecimen collection, processing and routing.

• Establishment and expansion of handling and processing procedures, setting quality cut offs and process improvements.

• Sample Accessioning, cataloguing and processing.

• Tissue processing for cell isolation, ex-vivo cell culturing, Nucleic acid extraction (DNA and RNA), blood fractionation, peripheral blood mononuclear cell isolation.

• Immortalized Cell Culturing & ex-vivo Cell Culturing.

• Establishing Quality Indicators and biospecimen products assessment.

• Establishing and implementing the quality control system for the unit and pMedGR.

Services

Tissue processing

This includes processing of tissue to obtain cells or molecules (DNA/RNA/proteins) for further analyses:

1. DNA/RNA extraction from the tissue for NGS analyses.

2. Viable cells in single cell suspensions for Mass Cytometry (CyTOF) analysis or by Single Cell Genomics (10x Platinum) platforms available in pMedGR.

3. Tissue and cell extracts for Proteomics/Metabolomics analyses.

4. Viable cells for ex-vivo cell culturing.

Blood Processing

1. This includes blood fractionation by centrifugation in order to collect plasma, leukocytes and erythrocytes or serum.

2. Blood processing may involve nucleic acid and protein molecules isolation from either whole blood preparations of from blood fragments of patients and normal controls.

3. Viable cells for ex-vivo cell culturing.

Cell culturing

1. Culturing of immortalized cell lines for experimental uses involving further analyses with the advanced technology platforms of pMedGR.

2. Ex-vivo cell culturing involving further analyses with the advanced technology platforms of pMedGR.

Other Services

include consultation and support for study-specific design for biospecimen collection, processing and routing. Trained laboratory staff is available to meet with the study team to consult on study-specific services requested. The consultation can include specimen collection strategy, aliquoting and storage, and provide sample quality and quantity requirements for downstream analysis.

Depending on the complexity of the study, the unit may assess sample processing requirements to determine if the unit can meet he study needs and may also facilitate coordination of the investigator’s lab working procedures with the unit’s workflows.

Equipment

• Centrifuges

• Microcentrifuges

• Microscopes

• Biological Class III safety cabinet

• CO2 Incubator

• Chemical safety cabinet

• Heat Incubators

• Bioanalyzer

• Gel documentations system

• Histoqinette tissue processor

To support operations, the Unit also possesses

• Multiple freezers

• Autoclave

• Analytical balances

• Cell counters

• Sample prep mill

• Heat blocks

• Waterbaths

• Water filtration system

In-progress for obtaining

• Tissue gentleMACS Octo-Dissociator with heaters

• autoMACS Pro Cell Separator

• Bar Code Printer

Access

Access to the unit will be restricted to investigators who have successfully petitioned the use of pMedGR facility’s services through the online Service Request Form, reviewed and approved by the appropriate scientific and bioethics review committees. 

Once a study is approved, a Research Agreement will be signed by the investigator initiating the request. This agreement will be binding, requiring the investigator to adhere to appropriate sample handling and processing protocols, ethical contact and any corresponding clinical information in regards to biospecimens. Adjudication of dispute in service priority or any other dispute, is the responsibility of the pMedGR managing and scientific committee.

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