We are pleased to announce the signing of a strategic collaboration agreement between BBMRI.it, the Italian Node of the European Research Infrastructure for Biobanks and Biomolecular Resources, and ELIXIR-IT, the Italian Node of the European ELIXIR Infrastructure, dedicated to Bioinformatics and Life Sciences.
This collaboration represents an important step to foster synergic actions between the two Research Infrastructures aimed at strengthening Italian biomedical research, opening new perspectives for the integrated analysis of biological ‘big data’ and the development of precision medicine.
The Parties will commit to promoting the integrated analysis of biological ‘big data’, collected and characterised in biobanks, as well as the sharing of specific knowledge and expertise, where bioinformatics and biobanks represent an indispensable source of knowledge for finding viable solutions for personalised medicine.
Among the main objectives of the agreement is the collaboration between the national biobank system BBMRI.it and the ELIXIR-IT platforms, with a focus on security and control in accessing sensitive data for precision medicine applications. In addition, BBMRI.it and ELIXIR-IT will work together to adopt shared access policies and infrastructures, in line with the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC) strategies, and to promote good practices on ethical, legal and social issues (ELSI).
The three-year agreement provides for joint training activities and specific agreements to define operational terms and conditions.
‘The collaboration between BBMRI.it and ELIXIR-IT represents a significant opportunity to improve the competitiveness of scientific research in Italy and to contribute to the progress of precision medicine, which is fundamental for the sustainability of the national and European healthcare system’ stated the Head of the Italian Node of ELIXIR, Prof. Graziano Pesole, and the National Coordinator of the Italian Node of BBMRI, Prof. Marialuisa Lavitrano.