Biobanks in Low Resource Contexts

A rise is expected in non-communicable disease burden in low and middle income countries (LMICs) in the next 20 years. Stratified medicine and target therapies promise to ensure response to drugs and exclude adverse effects, but the genetic background of populations from LMICs is rarely addressed. Biobanks are the currency for representation of LMICs’ populations in scientific research. They can provide populations in these regions with the equitable opportunity for research to include their particular genetic and environmental make-up and provide solutions that are also applicable to them. Lack of foundation healthcare services, aligned with the need for biobank infrastructure to be compatible with local conditions and conservation methods, affect the development of biobanks. Underlying this is the insufficiency of medical personnel expertise, trained technicians and researchers to provide diagnostic data annotation, to execute basic biobanking services and biobanking research. New technologies and increased annotation will permit harmonization of these biobanks. Inconsistent regulations and ethical guidelines including cultural and religious limitations for acquiring samples/information and low prioritization or lack of understanding of the importance of biobanking in a public health context by government officials and policymakers impede benefit sharing and sustainability. New models for ethical governance will address cultural and social structures that exist in LMICs and provide benefit sharing for biobankers, researchers and contributing populations. Research collaborations can facilitate economic investment, training, collaboration, publications, technology transfer, and health care improvements. Together with institutional investment to sustain permanent technical and scientific personnel, they can provide sustainability.