Welcome
Welcome to the UNC BioSpecimen Processing Facility (BSP)
The UNC BSP is a centralized, quality-controlled and quality-assured facility for the processing, storage, and disbursement of human biospecimens. Our mission is to provide a cost-effective UNC-based facility to process biospecimens, and to provide laboratory support for investigator-initiated large-scale clinical, epidemiological, and other studies at UNC and beyond.
The BSP operates in 2400 square ft of laboratory space geared for high throughput processing, with specific emphasis on nucleic acid isolation and quantitation. We perform isolations from a variety of tissue types, and frequently work with our clients to pilot new methods to better suit their needs. We are a CAP-accredited biorepository currently housing over 500,000 biospecimens, including those retained by clinicians who wish to store study samples from unusual or potentially important patients.
In addition to laboratory services, the facility serves as a scientific resource for investigators seeking advice on study design including specimen collection, storage methods, and human subject issues. The BSP draws on over 18 years of operational experience and the diverse knowledge of our core staff members to provide exemplary customer service and high-quality laboratory services.
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Recent Additions to the BSP
In an effort to meet the needs of our clients, the BSP has upgraded our magnetic bead isolation robots. We are pleased to offer nucleic acid isolation on the Chemagic 360 platform! These platforms deliver the same high-quality isolations as the previous MSMI platforms with a shorter run time.
For FFPE-preserved tissues, we are excited to announce the acquisition of an Ionic Purification System from Purigen Biosytems. This new technology uses isotachophoresis (ITP) to isolate nucleic acids from these notoriously difficult tissue types. Yields are higher than existing column based methods with virtually no contaminant carryover!