Tissue Procurement Core (TPC)

Provides a centralized resource to collect, process, store, and utilize human biospecimens for translational and biomedical research.

The Tissue Procurement Core (TPC) is a shared resource with the Siteman Cancer Center and provides research programs and researchers with a centralized resource to collect, process, store and utilize human biospecimens for translational cancer and general biomedical research.

The TPC aims to provide a general archive of annotated frozen tumor and patient-matched non-malignant tissues for pilot, retrospective correlative science studies, assist investigators in the prospective collection and storage of biospecimens from participants enrolled on specific clinical studies, and facilitate the use of human biospecimens and their derivatives for molecular and genomic research.

Dedicated staff and facilities are used to generate bio-fluid derivatives (serum, plasma, cell isolates) as well as nucleic acid (DNA and RNA) and histological derivatives (embedding/sectioning) from patient-derived specimens.

Services to facilitate tissue-based translational research such as laser capture microdissection, along with pathology consultation resources, are also available. An archive of snap-frozen biospecimens (tumor tissue, non-malignant tissue, serum, plasma) and corresponding de-identified pathology and demographic data from patients with a variety of solid and hematologic malignancies are also available for IRB-approved investigator studies through the TPC General Specimen Bank Registry. Currently, the tissue bank contains more than 700,000 specimens and greater than 95% of the banked tissue is in support of life science and biomedical research.

For more details on services and facilities, see the TPC webpage on the Washington University Core Research Facilities and Resources website.

Facilities & Other Resources

For a description of TPC and other ICTS resources, see the Tools and Resources page.

WU TPC Receives CAP Biorepository Accreditation

The College of American Pathologists (CAP) Biorepository Accreditation program operates under a rigorous 3-year cycle that is designed to improve and recognize the quality and consistency of facilities that collect, process, store, and distribute biospecimens for translational research. As announced by the Siteman Cancer Center, this accreditation – that meets and exceeds CAP standards – allows TPC to support the intensifying need for qualified samples critical in accelerating advances in genomics, biospecimen science and personalized medicine.

Spotlight

WUSTL Biospecimen Navigator (WBN) has been released!

WBN is a comprehensive catalog of research biospecimens collected across the WUSTL scientific community. The following is the Production URL for the application: https://wbn.wustl.edu/.

If you have any questions, please contact the Help Desk at help@bmi.wustl.edu.

Request a Service

To request services, please complete this order form.

Contact

See our program website for more detailed information.

TPC Team:

Mark Watson, MD, PhD – Director

Brian Goetz – Laboratory Manager
bdgoetz@wustl.edu
314-454-7605

Affiliations