BBMRI.at Annual Meeting 2026: Review of the 12th BBMRI.at SEAB & ACP Meeting

Annual meeting with key national stakeholders

On 13 January 2026, BBMRI.at held its 12^th SEAB & ACP Meeting at the Vetmeduni in Vienna. The meeting brought together the BBMRI.at consortium, the Scientific and Ethical Advisory Board (SEAB), representatives of Austrian university vice rectorates (ACP), and the Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research (BMBWF) to review recent progress and to discuss topics of strategic relevance for the coming periods.

Following a welcome by the BBMRI.at coordination team (Gregor Gorkiewicz, Cornelia Stumptner) and the National Node Director (Georg Göbel), participants received an update on BBMRI-ERIC prepared by Jens Habermann, outlining current developments at the European level and their relevance for national nodes.

BBMRI.at progress report

The BBMRI.at progress report, presented by Work Package (WP) leads, summarized key achievements of the past year – BBMRI.at’s 12^th year since its foundation – and outlined planned activities for the year ahead.

Highlights included advances in:

Datafication and interoperability (WP1), including the development of technical specifications for a National Node Biobank Data Communication Platform enabling automatic data transfer from Austrian biobanks to BBMRI-ERIC platforms.

Legal and regulatory support (WP2) continued through the at Legal Helpdesk and Knowledge Base and was complemented by events addressing very current topics, such as the European Health Data Space (EHDS), secondary use of data, or the use of artificial intelligence in biobanking.

Quality management and standardization (WP3, WP6) remained a central focus at BBMRI.at. BBMRI.at supported its partners in strengthening accreditation readiness through targeted workshops, cross-audits with a focus on ISO 20387, the participation in proficiency testing, and active contribution to ISO and CEN standards development.

Environmental sustainability (WP4) gained further importance with analyses of survey data to assess the environmental impact of biobanking operations and the identification of potential measures to reduce energy consumption and waste.

The strengthening of veterinary and non-human biobanking within a One Health framework (WP5, WP6) is a strategic priority of BBMRI.at. Activities comprised a systematic mapping of veterinary biobanks across BBMRI-ERIC member states and targeted communication activities to increase the visibility of veterinary biobanking.

In addition,at (through WP6) contributed to international (ISO) standard developments and EU-funded projects such as MICROBE and GenomeMET, co-led the Austrian Cohort Initiative (ATCI), and collaborated with other research infrastructures (such as Exposome Austria/EIRENE, OSCA /DiSSCo).

In-depth discussions on strategic biobank topics

A central part of the meeting was dedicated to in-depth discussions with all participants.

• “Biobanks as expert facilities”
  

One key topic addressed the evolving role of biobanks as expert facilities, extending beyond classical tasks such as sample and data storage.

Discussions focused on the criteria required for biobanks to act credibly in this role, including accredited competencies, documented processes, technological capabilities, and scientific and medical expertise. Participants also addressed which expert services biobanks could offer, such as pre-analytical and quality advice, process validation, training, and audit readiness.

• “Legal and ethical perspectives”
  

Further discussions focused on legal and ethical aspects of biobanking, including the feasibility of developing a harmonised informed consent framework across BBMRI.at biobanks. Building on feedback from previous SEAB meetings, the consortium presented recent achievements and gathered input on practical implementation and acceptance by ethics committees.

The implications of the European Health Data Space (EHDS) for biobanking research infrastructures were also discussed, particularly with respect to governance, responsibilities and ethical safeguards.

Appreciation and closing remarks

The Annual Meeting was characterized by constructive and engaged discussions.

BBMRI.at would like to thank all participants—members of the SEAB, consortium partners, university leadership, and the ministry —for their active engagement and valuable contributions to the meeting. Special thanks also to the University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna for hosting the meeting.