Access to Samples

If you have a research idea involving the use of biological samples, you can contact the Coordinating Centre at mail@nationalbiobank.dk. Centre staff can assist you in developing your research idea.

We will make sure that the DNB can provide the samples you need for your project, and we can advise on relevant sample types, required number and volume, in order to optimize the use of the sample material. In addition, the Coordinating Center staff will guide you through the application process, and can also suggest relevant collaborators.

PKU cards
Please note that projects involving samples from the national screening for congenital diseases (PKU cards/heel blood samples) have a lengthy processing time. Please make sure that you get a specific agreement with the Department of Congenital Diseases, including an agreed time schedule for the project. 

Please contact the Department of Congenital Diseases at sikkerpost-ms@ssi.dk.

Prior to submitting your project application to the DNB, your project must be approved by a Danish Research Ethics Committee.

Researchers from abroad or Danish and foreign companies may gain access to DNB research samples if they collaborate with a Danish research institution who acts as data controller in the project.

The DNB can only disclose samples to you once you have obtained permission to handle personal data in your project from your own institution. Thus, you need to have your project listed and approved at your institution’s Record of Processing Activities also known as “Fortegnelsen”.

Please make sure to enclose the approval when you submit your project application to us.  

Once you have obtained the necessary approvals, please fill in and submit your DNB application to the DNB Coordinating Centre. Download the DNB application form here.

The application must contain a project description as well as a precise description (type, number, quantity…) of the samples you apply for. Please attach both the application to as well as the approval from both the Research Ethics Committee and your institution (Record of Processing Activities or "Fortegnelsen") to your DNB application.

If the biological samples applied for are located in external biobanks, the Coordinating Centre can guide you to the correct point of contact.

The Coordinating Centre will prepare all incoming applications for assessment by the DNB Scientific Committee (DNB Indstillingsudvalg).

During the preparatory phase, the Coordinating Centre will ensure that all documentation (project descriptions, applications and approvals) is fully aligned with respect to project title, study period, number of samples, etc.

The DNB Scientific Committee reviews applications in the order received and responds no later than one month after receipt of a complete application.

The Committee consists of:

• 2 representatives from Statens Serum Institut, including the chairman

• 1 representative from the Danish Council for Independent Research | Medical Sciences

• 1 representative from the Danish Regions

• 1 representative from the Danish Patients organisation

In addition to the DNB Scientific Committee, SSI also has a specific committee assessing requests for access to samples from the collection of PKU cards.

If the research project is approved, the Coordinating Centre will need to receive approval from the Danish Data Protection Agency (Datatilsynet) before biological samples can be handed over to the researcher.

Once the research project has been approved, the researcher and the Coordinating Centre will agree on the necessary details regarding the samples, i.e. which specific samples are included in a case or control group, what type of tubes are to be used for the samples and whether the samples are to be handled in a specific way. Shipping costs and other fees are also agreed upon.

Staff from the DNB’s IT department will prepare a picking list to be used by the laboratory staff when they retrieve the samples. This ensures a high standard of quality and traceability in sample handling. In some cases, SSI-based laboratories may be able analyse the biological samples that you have applied for. In such cases data alone will be passed on to your research project when the necessary permits are in place.

Finally, an agreement is entered into between the Coordinating Centre and the responsible researcher describing the terms and conditions for sampling and handling. Then the samples are picked and handed out.