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Spain adopts full membership of the European Research Infrastructure for Biobanking and Biomolecular Resources
Graz, Austria: The Kingdom of Spain has been officially accepted as full Member of the Biobanking and Biomolecular Resources Research Infrastructure – European Research Infrastructure Consortium (BBMRI- ERIC). Membership was approved by the BBMRI-ERIC Assembly of Members in September 2025, following of a receipt of the application letter from Dra. Eva Ortega-Paíno, Secretary General for Research, on behalf of the Government of Spain.
Dra. Teresa Escamez Martinez serves as the Scientific Coordinator of the Spanish National Node (ISCIII Platform of Biomodels and Biobanks) and the National Node Director for Spain. Describing the significance and value of becoming a full Member of BBMRI-ERIC, she says:
“Spain’s full membership of BBMRI-ERIC not only strengthens our National Node, the ISCIII Platform for Biomodels and Biobanks and its network of 56 biobanks and other biomodel-specialised units but also enhances international visibility and interoperability.
“Our research community is very proud of this milestone, which reflects years of collaborative effort and shared commitment. By supporting the responsible sharing of samples and data, we align our community with international standards for quality, ethics, and data stewardship, thereby accelerating knowledge transfer and deepening links between research, clinical practice, industry, and society. Together, these advances enable more connected, efficient research with greater impact for patients.”
Prof. Jens Habermann, BBMRI-ERIC’s Director General, adds:
“There has been a very fruitful long-standing partnership between the Kingdom of Spain and BBMRI-ERIC that, with Member status, is now fully substantiated. This is thanks to their dedication and engagement across the network that is enriching the portfolio of the entire BBMRI community.”
The Kingdom of Spain’s full Member status was welcomed by Dra. Eva Ortega-Paíno, Secretary General for Research, Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities, Spain. Dra. Ortega-Paíno was previously first National Node Director for Spain. Speaking after official confirmation was made, Dra. Ortega-Paíno shares:
“I am delighted. It was our vision from the beginning that Spain’s innovative and quality driven biobanking community would become a major contributor to the BBMRI-ERIC network”
Spain’s profile
Already an Observer member, Spain continues its representation to the Assembly of Members by the Carlos III Institute of Health (ISCIII); Public Research Agency under the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities. The National Platform of Biomodels and Biobanks continues as the National Node with Dra. Teresa Escamez Martinez as National Node Director.
The ISCIII Biomodels and Biobanks Platform is an initiative of the Carlos III Health Institute. This Platform is structured into four scientific-technological HUBS: Biobanks, Organoids, Animal Models and 3D Printing.
The vision of the ISCIII Biomodels and Biobanks Platform is to become a national and international model for companies, clinical institutions, and research and administrative bodies as a common infrastructure that enables researchers to perform – from scientific, technological and regulatory perspectives – a complete preclinical validation ranging from the design to the in vivo validation of the product.
The Biobank Hub of the ISCIII Biomodels and Biobanks Platform contains 56 biobanks located throughout the country forming a Spanish biobank ecosystem.
The common goal of both ISCIII and the Spanish Biobank Hub is to make the biological specimens and associated data available for (inter)national biomedical research and to offer researchers multi-centre sample collections. The aim is to improve the competitiveness of the Spanish biomedical and health research system by providing researchers with centralised access to collections and sample associated data. Their cutting edge services also include advising on issues in the ethical and legal realm.
The Spanish Biobank Hub commitment is not limited to the Spanish biobank community. With many of their experts acting in the BBMRI-ERIC common services area as well as in European working groups, the Spanish Biobank Hub also strongly supports biobank developments in Europe.
About BBMRI-ERIC
BBMRI-ERIC is the European research infrastructure (RI) for biobanking and biomolecular resources, one of the largest RIs in the health and life sciences. Set up in 2013, it includes around 500 biobanks within 26 Nodes from 25 Member/Observer countries plus the global organisation IARC/WHO.
A distributed research infrastructure, BBMRI-ERIC enables the development of innovative technology and processes as a cross-domain network that facilitates responsible access to high quality samples, data and biomolecular resources. We achieve this through multidisciplinary expertise and service provision, scientific excellence, knowledge exchange and partnerships in health and life sciences. BBMRI-ERIC’s vision is simplified as: “Biobanking for a Healthier World”. Its headquarters are in Graz, Austria.
BBMRI-ERIC Members: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.
BBMRI-ERIC Observers: Denmark, IARC/WHO, Qatar and Türkiye. For more information about BBMRI-ERIC, visit www.bbmri-eric.eu
