Curating frozen samples of tissues and molecular extracts, as well as their data, is a vital responsibility of modern research museums given the central role of molecular information in biodiversity inventory and phylogenetic research. Frozen biorepository samples share many of the cataloging and archiving requirements of traditional “trad” specimens, but have additional metadata, preparation processing, and specialized storage tracking requirements. Additionally, traditional voucher specimens are often the physical source of tissue samples, and the two types of cataloged objects shared data between them. For many research institutions, catalog data integration between these two types of collections is essential.
Specify has modeled and supported tissue, molecular extract, and sequence data in its core data model as Collection Objects, Preparations, or Material Samples, and their properties.
(See: Methods for Managing Tissue Collections in Specify)
Responding to the growth of biorepositories at member institutions, we are interested in elaborating Specify’s capacity and capabilities for managing data of tissues and extracts.
We invite members of the Specify Consortium and broader community to participate in an open Zoom discussion on February 12, 2025 focused on processing requirements for biodiversity tissue and molecular sample data. The goal of the session is to understand member existing workflows and practices for cataloging, logging, integration, and publishing of biorepository data in order to inform Specify’s development priorities in this vital area.
Please join us on Wednesday, February 12, 2025 at 3 pm U.S. CST/10 pm CET/ Thursday, February 13 at 7am AEST to join the conversation.
Join the Discussion
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We look forward to discussing challenges and opportunities with you!