Bioanalytical and Biospecimen Core

Bioanalytical and Biospecimen Core – Abstract This is a new Biomedical Research Core that was created through our ongoing center evaluation process and needs assessment. As part of this assessment, Center Members indicated that they wished to have available (1) a bioinformatics service and (2) a human biospecimen biobank/repository. Therefore, after obtaining important and appropriate institutional support to develop this new Core. The Core contains 3 Facilities, including a Bioinformatics Facility, a Biospecimen Facility, and a Biostatistics Facility (this Facility is the same as the previous “Clinical Component”). Enthusiasm about this new Biomedical Research Core is high for several reasons. First, as evidenced by our ongoing self-evaluation process, the new areas are extremely important to our members, and the new services will clearly add value to our members. Secondly, the development of this new Core clearly demonstrates our commitment toward improvement of the Center. An additional major strength of this new Core is that it is expected to encourage interaction of clinically based and basic science investigators – and thus, it is also anticipated that this new Core will support and encourage collaboration of investigators within the Center. Finally, by providing additional opportunities in digestive disease research, it is expected that this Facility will help further expand the Center’s membership. The new Core includes 3 Specific Aims as follows: 1) To provide DDRCC Members with essential computational infrastructure to carry out complex bioinformatic research approaches by providing investigators with expert technical staff to execute bioinformatic analysis of genetic, transcriptomic, and epigenomic data sets, and by training and mentoring DDRCC Members and their laboratory members in these techniques. 2) Create a Biospecimen Facility specifically curated for MUSC DDRCC themed research. 3) To provide statistical expertise and support for DDRCC members. In summary, this new Core is a unique resource restricted to Digestive Disease researchers that will provide services critical to the mission of the MUSC DDRCC to advance in particular, translational and clinical research focused on digestive and liver diseases.