Europe Biobank Week Congress 2025 comes to Bologna 

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Joint press release from BBMRI-ERIC, ESBB, BBMRI Italy and ICSC.

The Europe Biobank Week (EBW) Congress, jointly organised between BBMRI-ERIC (the European Research Infrastructure for Biobanking and Biomolecular Resources in Health and Life Science) and ESBB (the European, African and Middle Eastern Society for Biopreservation and Biobanking) takes place from 13-16 May at Bologna Congressi, Italy.

The 2025 congress will host sessions showcasing the latest developments that represent the increasing importance of biobanking for human, environmental and animal health.

Bigger than ever, the organisers welcome over 700 delegates, including 45 sponsors, to embed the congress at the most influential biobanking event of the year. Particularly amongst research infrastructures, EBW is unique in size and scale for bringing together researchers, biobank staff, institutions and industry who engage in high-quality scientific sessions.

EBW25 highlights

Four expert workshops, two keynotes, 99 oral and 137 poster presentations are set to be delivered over four days.

Keynote highlights are from Prof. Walter Ricciardi, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Rome, speaking about the need for courageous leadership in science and health in challenging times and Prof. Dr. Lili Milani, University of Tartu, on bringing the benefits of biobanking closer to the people.

The Scientific Programme Committee is also pleased to welcome European Commission expertise from Dr. Mélodie Bernaux who will discuss European Health Data Spaces – Concepts, implementation, and implications for biobanks.

A special topic curated by the European Partnership for Personalised Medicine will explore the critical role biobanks play for advances in personalised medicine (PM) as a scientific and healthcare concept to address citizens and patients’ needs.

Prof. Jens K. Habermann, BBMRI-ERIC Director General, and Roland Leiminger, ESBB President, have led the joint organising committee.

Habermann shares:

“EBW is the unique place for our biobanking community to build, maintain and intensify collaborations with academic and industry partners, citizens and policy makers while learning about newest developments and discussing future directions. I am very much looking forward to this wide thematic portfolio of workshops, session and podium discussion and – last but not least – the extensive networking possibilities.”

Leiminger agrees:

“I am delighted to welcome all participants to EBW25 – the central meeting place for the international biobanking community. I look forward to time with colleagues who are full of scientific passion, knowledge and inspiration that furthers development of this fascinating field. The future of biobanks is in our hands – let’s be the creators of this future!”

This year’s congress is hosted by BBMRI Italy. Professor Marialuisa Lavitrano has led the local organising committee with the strong involvement of the Italian biobanking community. Prof. Lavitrano contributes:

“We are honored to welcome the global biobanking community to Italy for Europe Biobank Week 2025. This congress offers an unparalleled platform for biobankers, healthcare professionals, academic experts and industry leaders to connect, collaborate, and share cutting-edge research and innovations.

“Italy is proud to showcase the latest scientific advancements in biobanking, which reflect our nation’s commitment to leadership in scientific excellence and international collaboration.”

Super computing takes centre stage

High capacity data processing and storage of sensitive health data is a major topic of the congress. Prof. Zoccoli, President of the ICSC – Italy’s National High-Performance Computing, Big Data and Quantum Computing Research Centre – will be an integral part of the opening ceremony.

BBMRI-ERIC and the ICSC are founding Nodes of the EOSC Federation. In build up stage, the Federation links data repositories and services that will be instrumental for Open Science to progress in Europe. This early cross Node collaboration is significant, as Prof. Jens K. Habermann explains:

“We are delighted to welcome the ICSC at EBW25. Cooperation between ICSC and BBMRI will enable the widest possible access to scientific communities and exchange of knowledge and experience.

“Better data management and sharing with ICSC and BBMRI users will also provide capacity for secure and trusted data processing environments for sensitive health data. The result will enable new collaborative approaches at larger scale.”

Prof. Zoccoli adds:

“It is a real pleasure to take part in this prestigious congress, which brings together the entire scientific community grappling with the crucial challenge represented by the exploitation of biological and medical data for the study and treatment of diseases. This is a field where the ICSC National Center is already making significant contributions, which highlight the strategic choices made by the Italian Ministry of University and Research under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan.

“Therefore, we look forward to close cooperation between ICSC and BBMRI—built on and expanding the principles of sharing and collaboration at the heart of the EOSC initiative—will further strengthen Europe’s capacity to manage health data and develop innovative analytical tools, always in full compliance with privacy and EU regulations.”

Programme

The scientific programme brings together experts from across Europe and further afield through oral and poster presentations that address:

• Navigating the Future of Biobanks: Challenges and Innovations. This includes topics on One Health, Rare Diseases, green practices and public health priorities.
• Bridging the Gap: Biobanks and Data-Driven Research folds in topics of artificial intelligence, big data, secure processing environments of sensitive health data and showcasing best practice.
• Biobanks – Pathways to Quality and Efficiency will address quality control of samples, preanalytical quality indicators, handling special samples and critical biobank resources in multi-omics research.
• Education, ELSI Insights, Stakeholder Collaboration and Patient-Centered Partnerships incorporates topics on ethical, legal and societal implications of biobanking, patient-centric engagement, building stronger partnerships and increasing sustainability within biobanking through training and education.

An additional industry led programme has been developed to profile the potential of existing and future partnerships. This includes a podium discussion to explore existing synergies of best practice and innovation.

The closing ceremony will highlight the best oral and poster presentations, recognise community leaders who have made significant contributions to biobanking, announce the winner of Pitch your innovative idea and make awards to biobanks that have achieved the BBMRI Quality Label for 2025.

Strengthening the community through education

Four pre-congress workshops, led by community experts, focus in detail on sharing knowledge and best practices.

• AI in medicine focuses on its latest applications and the ethical considerations surrounding its implementation.
• Traceability of samples and data examines issues and challenges biobanks deal with under strict safety procedures and confidentiality.
• Building Bridges will look at practical ways to enhance patient and public engagement and involvement in biobanks and research.
• Finally, Multi-actor engagement approach for next generation biobanking looks at how to adopt innovative models that encourage active involvement from all stakeholders, with a view to ensuring scientific development that aligns with the principles of responsible research and innovation and open science.

Sponsors and exhibitors

The Europe Biobank Week 2025 is made possible by 45 sponsors that support the congress and who will be present at the Bologna Congressi to share their expertise and innovations that help make quality biobanking and life science research possible. The Europe Biobank Week Congress is supported by Emilia Romagna Regional Tourism Board.

Downloads

You can access the PDFs of the press release in Italian and English.