The Chernobyl Tissue Bank A Repository for Biomaterial and Data Used in Integrative and Systems Biology Modeling the Human Response to Radiation
Title: The Chernobyl Tissue Bank A Repository for Biomaterial and Data Used in Integrative and Systems Biology Modeling the Human Response to Radiation
Author: Geraldine Thomas, Kristian Unger, Marko Krznaric, Angela Galpine, Jackie Bethel, Christopher Tomlinson, Mark Woodbridge, Sarah Butcher
Reference: Genes 2012, 3, 278-290; [PDF-203K]May 2012
doi:10.3390/genes3020278
Keywords: Chernobyl; Tissue Bank; systems biology
Abstract: The only unequivocal radiological effect of the Chernobyl accident on human health is the increase in thyroid cancer in those exposed in childhood or early adolescence. In response to the scientific interest in studying the molecular biology of thyroid cancer post Chernobyl, the Chernobyl Tissue Bank (CTB: www.chernobyltissuebank.com) was established in 1998. Thus far it is has collected biological samples from 3,861 individuals, and provided 27 research projects with 11,254 samples. The CTB was designed from its outset as a resource to promote the integration of research and clinical data to facilitate a systems biology approach to radiation related thyroid cancer. The project has therefore developed as a multidisciplinary collaboration between clinicians, dosimetrists, molecular biologists and bioinformaticians and serves as a paradigm for tissue banking in the omics era.