The George Washington University Biorepository is a centralized, CAP-accredited, state-of-the-art biospecimen resource located in the Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Tropical Medicine at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences. The Biorepository provides compliant biospecimen processing, long-term storage, and data-integrated inventory management infrastructure to support clinical trials, translational research, and multi-institutional collaborations in the United States and internationally.
Operating under rigorous quality management systems and standardized operating procedures, the Biorepository ensures specimen integrity, regulatory compliance, and full traceability required for modern clinical, translational, and regulatory research. The facility maintains high-quality, well-
annotated biospecimens linked to clinical and laboratory data and supports investigations in HIV/AIDS, cancer, infectious diseases, immunology, vaccine development, and other areas requiring controlled biospecimen handling and long-term preservation.
The GW Biorepository serves as core infrastructure for several major national and international research programs and clinical trial networks, including:
- The AIDS and Cancer Specimen Resource (ACSR), an NCI-funded national biorepository supporting translational research in HIV-associated malignancies
- The AIDS Malignancy Consortium (AMC), an NCI-funded clinical trials network conducting therapeutic and correlative studies in individuals with HIV and cancer
- The GW Vaccine Research Unit (VRU), for which the Biorepository provides primary specimen storage, cryopreservation, and inventory infrastructure for vaccine and clinical research studies
- Multiple clinical and translational programs conducted in collaboration with the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI)
- Investigator-initiated and collaborative studies led by faculty of the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, as well as external academic, government, and industry partners
Through its integrated infrastructure, CAP-accredited quality systems, and extensive experience supporting federally funded, industry-sponsored, and investigator-initiated studies, the GW Biorepository enables complex single-site, multi-center, and international research programs that require reliable, compliant, and fully traceable biospecimen management. The Biorepository serves as a critical institutional and national resource supporting clinical research, translational science, and the development of new diagnostics, therapeutics, and vaccines.