ICAReB (Clinical Investigation and Access to Biological Resources) has been redifined as a platform at the beginning of 2008. As such, it endorses 2 main transversal activities oriented in priority to all pasteurian research Units needing its services, but also opened to the scientific community working on the same subjects – namely, infectious diseases and immunity :

• a clinical investigation activity, which ensures accurate recruitment and follow up of well-characterized volunteers, whether healthy or patients, participating to research protocols,

• a biobank activity, which allows all human samples taken in charge at ICAReB to be collected, then prepared, stored, and distributed following the best standards of quality. The quality process in which ICAReB is involved since 2005 led to ISO 9001: v. 2000 certification of the biobank activity in 2007.

ICAReB offers clinical investigation and biobank support for various research projects among which may be cited – as examples of past or recent research protocols : malaria, tuberculosis, amoebiasis, vaccine immunity (against HBV, measles, pertussis…).

In 2008, three new protocols started :

• The first concerning Hidrosadenitis suppurativa, aims at unravelling the genetic basis of this disorder, hereditary in 1/3^rd of cases, and which potentially causes severe and mutilating cutaneous infections ; this project is led in collaboration with Dr. A. Nassif from Institut Pasteur’s Medical Centre,

• The second is the management of WHO’s biobank of Human African Trypanosomiasis, belonging to a wider project of WHO, which has simultaneously launched a call to promote through this samples’ collection, the elaboration of new performing, cost-effective and more feasible diagnostic methods of this tropical disease ;

• The third project is called “DIAGMICOLL” (Collection of samples for the Diagnostic of Micro-organisms). It is based on a prospective cohort of healthy subjects and its goal is to allow, through a broad panel of samples (blood, urine, swabs, saliva….) the setting up and validation of new diagnostic methods in the field of infectious and tropical diseases.

ICAReB belongs to the French Biobanking Network and is also associated to the pan-european biobanking Network BBMRI (Biobanking and BioMolecular Research Infrastructure).

Keywords: Clinical Investigation, Biobank, Human sample collections, Infectious Diseases, Immunity, Genetics

Human Opiorphin, a novel natural anti-nociceptive modulator of opioid-dependant pathways. A Wisner, E Dufour, M Messaoudi, A Nejdi, A Marcel, M-N Ungeheuer and Catherine Rougeot. Proc. Natl. Ac. Sci. USA 2006, 103 (47) : 17979-17984.

Identification of novel HLA-DR1-restricted epitopes from the hepatitis B virus envelope protein in mice expressing HLA-DR1 and vaccinated human subjects.

A Pajot, M-L Michel, M Mancini-Bourgine, M-N Ungeheuer, D M. Ojcius, F A. Lemonnier, and Y C Lone. Microbes Infect. 2006, 8 (12-13) : 2783-2790.

Ex-vivo perfusion of human spleens maintains clearing and processing functions. Buffet PA, G. Milon, V. Brousse, JM Correas, B. Dousset, A. Couvelard, R. Kianmanesh, O. Farges, A. Sauvanet, F. Paye, M-N. Ungeheuer , C. Ottone, H. Khun, L. Fiette, G. Guigon, M. Huerre, O. Mercereau-Puijalon, PH David. Blood 2006, 107(9) : 3745-3752.

Antibodies to tetanus, diphtheria >and pertussis among healthy adults vaccinated according to the French vaccination recommendations. Launay O, Toneatti C, Bernède C, Njamkepo E, Petitprez K, Leblond A, Larnaudie S, Goujon C, Ungeheuer MN, Ajana F, Raccurt C, Beytout J, Chidiac C, Bouhour D, Guillemot D, Guiso N. Hum Vaccin. 2009 May 9;5(5).