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Roland Leiminger is a trained instrumental analyst, biotechnologist and process engineer. He developed a new process for the purification of electrochemical pollutants in drinking water at the Fraunhofer Institute IPA in Stuttgart
and completed his thesis at the TFH Berlin. He then moved into the field of clinical medical diagnostics. Here he carried out technology transfers and established various new diagnostic solutions in the areas of infectiology, first
trimester screening and other applications. This also includes sample generation as well as study generation and networking in the sepsis networks. Furthermore, degrees in QM, QB and as a Quality-Auditor were added. By moving into
new areas of work, new levels of knowledge and networks were integrated in the area of metabolomic diagnostics using both GC MS/MS and LC MS/MS. Since 2017 he has been responsible for the area of NMR based clinical technical NMR
applications in the EIMEA space. Since 2018 he is responsible as Director Key Account Clinical, establishing new NMR IVDr solutions in the field of personalized medicine clinical diagnostics, biobanks, cancer research, rare diseases
and personalized medicine. He is vice president of the European, Middle Eastern and African Society for Biobanking and Bio preservation ESBB as well as co-chair of the ESBB working group Automation & Interfaces.
Agnieszka Matera-Witkiewicz, PhD of Pharmacy, M.Sc, Eng Biotechnology, R&D Project Manager (postgraduate), Clinical Trials Management (postgraduate), Associate Professor and Head of Wroclaw Medical University Biobank and Core Facility:
Screening Laboratory of Biological Activity Assays and Collection of Biological Material, ESBB Quality Management Working Group Co-Chair, ESBB Councilor, BBMRI.pl Quality Lead, BBMRI-ERC QM Expert,Leading Auditor of Quality Management
System (IRCAA18007), Polish Committee for Standardization TC Biotechnology expert, International Organization for Standardization (ISO) Expert TC Biotechnology in WG2 Biobanks and Bioresources. Author and Concept creator of Wroclaw
Medical University Biobank-first Integrated Biobank in Poland with first ISO 20387:2021-01 accreditation and ISO 9001:2015 Quality Certificate “Biobanking for scientific, R&D and educational purposes” in Poland; nomination
and special award in national competition “Leaders in University Management LUMEN” for WMU Biobank establishment and certification. She was responsible for coordination and management of national QMS unification in biobanks belonging
to Polish Biobanking Network. She coordinated the cooperation in quality area between 50 biobanks in Poland. She has been responsible for lauching the idea of accreditation programme in Poland in close cooperation with Polish Centre
for Accreditation. Co-author and concept creator of “Quality Standards for Polish Biobanks Handbook”.
Ayat Salman is a doctoral student at McGill University in the Department of Family Medicine and a consultant in biobanking sciences. She received her Bachelor’s Degree in Anatomy and Cell Biology and her Masters Degree in Experimental
Surgery from McGill. Her experience includes 10 years of clinical research experience, as a clinical research associate and 6 years of managerial experience with the HPB/Transplant Clinical Research Group at the McGill University
Health Centre (MUHC). She has been a lead expert at the MUHC in Biobanking since 2011. She has established multiple biobanks within the MUHC since 2011. She is currently the Chair of the ISO 276 (Biobanking and Biotechnology) Mirror
Committee within the Standards Council of Canada. She is also a member as well as ex-officio member of the ESBB Council since 2013 and now A Councillor since Spetember 2018. She is also co-chair of the Communications Committee
at ISBER and Chair of the Social Media Working Group of ESBB. Her area of expertise focuses on the evaluation of biobanks in primary care within Quebec.
Since the Leipzig Research Center for Civilisation Diseases (LIFE) was set up 2010, I've been active in the interesting field of biobanking. Now I'm head of the LIFE-Biobank and preanalytical laboratory. My personal experiences in
biobanking have concentrated on quality assurance of biological samples in biobanks, biobank management and education. I'm a member of the expert committee working group in the German Institute for Standardization (DIN) which supports
the ISO TC 276 responsible for the coming new ISO norm 20387 on biobanking and BBMRI-ERIC QM workgroups 3 and 4 for the evaluation of CEN standards. I also participated in quality workshops of BBMRI.de, which produced generic standard
operating procedures. As part of the Steering Committee of the new "German Biobank Alliance" (GBA) initiated and coordinated by BBMRI.de we try to link GBA biobanks to the BBMRI-ERIC infrastructure for the cross-border exchange
of biosamples and related data. To do so harmonization between GBA and BBMRI-ERIC is needed especially in IT networking, common quality standards and measurements as well as ELSI regulations.p>
Rolf Morselt is Marketing & Sales Manager for Askion GmbH - experienced partner for modular automated biobanking system solutions to handle and store biological material at the highest quality standards at temperatures below -185°C.
The ASKION C-line® system provides a flexible, modularly expandable and fully automatable system approach for all current and future requirements in the field of cryotechnology/biobanking. Askion's biobank solutions guarantees
maximum flexibility regarding sample formats and storage configuration. In addition he has a strong background in building sales organizations with P&L responsibility in a variety of functions with B2B and retail markets. His
core compentencies are: Business management, Sales & Marketing strategy, New Business Development, People Management, Cross Cultural, change Management, Strategical thinking, Integrity and loyalty. He became an ESBB member
9 years ago and has been involved for several years within ESBB, amongst others as Vendor Committee Chair, Councilor and member of the program committee of EBW.
Loes Linsen is a Master in Biotechnology and obtained a PhD in Biomedical Sciences from Hasselt University. Loes entered the biobank world in 2008. She became biobank manager of the University Biobank Limburg (UBiLim), where she set
up the organizational structure (a collaboration of 3 independent institutions with a biobank facility on each site), including the ethical/legal procedural framework, integration of the quality management system into ISO15189
accreditation and implementation of the Biobank Information Management System Lab vantage. In that period, she participated in the European FP6 project “Cancer Control using Population-based Registries and Biobanks”. Loes also
contributed to the setup of the Flemish Biobank, including auditing for the regional biobank audit programme. Since 2016 Loes is a staff member of the Biobank University Hospitals Leuven, where she continues to facilitate all things
biobanking from a (biospecimen) quality-oriented perspective. Loes is a member of ESBB, ISBER and the ISBER biospecimen research workgroup, as well as several expert working groups of bbmri-eric and bbmri.be.
Outi Törnwall is a chemist by university training and holds a PhD in the interdisciplinary field of sensory science and twin genetics. Outi has worked in biobanking since 2003, starting from a lab technician and advancing to a team
leader at the THL Biobank (National Institute for Health in Finland). In 2015, she moved to BBMRI-ERIC where she was a part of the infrastructure implementation phase, providing services to the member states and gateway access
to biobanks for the European research community. Currently, Outi leads the Data Access and Readiness team at BC Platforms, a biotechnology company that is an expert in data science solutions for personalized healthcare, drug discovery
and life science research. Outi champions the BC Platforms philosophy of driving forward the development and growth of global biobank network that facilitates the collaboration with biobanks and pharma and speed up the discovery
and development of new drugs and biomarker diagnostics.
ESBB Councilor and co-chair of ESBB Working Group Data Standardization & Harmonization. After graduating of the Lodz University of Technology, worked in the SME sector and the "Start Ups" environment. Since 2009 is associated with
the University of Lodz and from 2014 with the Biobank Laboratory at the University of Lodz. Involved in creating a biobank from scratch. Currently responsible for data management and IT infrastructure. He also implements digitization
and genetics projects - head of two projects: "Digital sharing of biomolecular and descriptive resources of Biobank and Department of Anthropology, University of Lodz - characteristics of populations living in present-day Poland
through the ages. Information platform e-czlowiek.pl (e-human.pl) "- and "Polish Genomic Map in open access - digitization of biomolecular resources of the Biobank Lab University of Lodz". One of the results of the project is the
establishment of a Federated European Genome Archive (EGA) Node in Poland. Member of general assembly of BBMRI.pl on behalf of the University of Lodz. As part of this project, responsible for information security audits for members
of the Polish Biobanks Network. Co-author of the Polish “Code of Conduct for processing personal data for scientific purpose in biobanking” - submitted for approval at the Polish Office for Personal Data Protection, co-author of
chapter 15 “Safety & Security” in “Quality Standards for Polish Biobanks”. Involved in coordination of BBMRI-ERIC Interoperability Forum. Engaged in organization of Bioinformatics Hackathons and Data Science Meetups.
Carmen Swanepoel
ESBB Councillor
Stellenbosch University and NHLS Tygerberg Hospital
I’m a Principal Medical Scientist and Lecturer within the Division of Haematopathology, Department of Pathology and jointly appointed by the National Health Laboratory Services (NHLS) and Stellenbosch University (SU) at Tygerberg Hospital, Western Cape,
South Africa. I’m involved in diagnostic services, the development of diagnostic laboratory tests, research, the teaching and training of staff and students in laboratory, diagnostic and research skills, managing research
funds and projects as well as quality management and regulatory compliance. I’ve also been involved in the development and are currently overseeing the departmental research and training flow cytometry laboratory, cell
culture facility and a small biobank. As the Haematology Molecular diagnostic scientist and the scientific and operational manager of various laboratory research units, I oversee the day to day diagnostic and research
operations in association with other research and technical staff. I’m GCP, GLP and IATA certified and ISO 15189 trained. Over the years I’ve gained expertise in other biobank and genomic related operations ranging
from governance, ethics, LIMS, sample and data sharing and protection, sample QC, risk management and QA through to sustainability. Ive been the basic science, genetics and biobank representative on the SU health research
ethics committee (HREC) and currently a national HPCSA Intern Scientist assessor for the discipline of Haematology. I’m also the treasurer of the South African Society of Haematology (SASH). Promoting the science of
biobanking, genetics and cancer as well as medical laboratory science within South Africa and the rest of Africa is a key mission and Im involved in various projects associated with it. To date, data protection, sharing,
and work related to biobanking and POPIA is a key research focus point. I serve as a co-chair of the European, Middle Eastern and African Society of biobanking (ESBB) African working group. Other membership and working
group involvement is the International Society for biological and environmental repositories (ISBER) and the Biobank and cohort network (BCNET) in association with the international agency for research on cancer (IARC)
and WHO. Through these initiatives, I’ve been heavily involved in related policy developments as well as the harmonization of SOP’s involving processes and QC.Other research interest includes molecular applications
in leukemia diagnosis, cancer resistance mechanisms as well the role of epigenetics particularly miRNA’s in haematological pathologies.
Valentina Colcelli (PhD) is Researcher at Italian National Research Council (CNR). Her main research interests focus on the interaction of domestic and European law in shaping rights and interests and market regulation. She also has a research interest
in a general reflection on personal and non-personal data beyond the EU legal system, internal market regulation, Technology Transfer, legal and ethical issues in research and innovation activities, and effective judicial
protection of biodiversity in light of fundamental rights. She published books concerning EU integration and more than 80 papers. She is a member of several projects funded by the EU and long-lasting research cooperation
international, like the H2020. She is External professor at the University of Perugia and Visiting External Examiners at the University of Malta.
Dr Nahla Afifi earned her MBBCh with honors, Master of Anatomy and Embryology and Diploma of Gynecology and Obstetrics from Ain Shams University, Egypt. She earned her PhD from Ain Shams University with joints supervision UMD, NJ, USA (Teratogenic Effect
of Alcohol and Cocaine on CF-1 mice with emphasis on ultrastructural and biochemical changes in the Liver”). Dr Nahla has spent her career working in research, academia and biobanking and earned a wealth of experience in these
fields. She started her career as a Medical Researcher in the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey then served as Assistant Professor of Anatomy and Embryology at Ain
Shams University, and Dubai Medical College for Girls, UAE. In 1999, Dr Nahla joined Qatar University's Biomedical Sciences Program promoted to associate professor in 2002m and was promoted to full professor of Anatomy and
Embryology in 2007. In December 2013 Dr Nahla joined Qatar Biobank part of Qatar Foundation for research, development and innovation as Education and Scientific Manager and obtained her certificate in ‘Principles in Biobanking’
from the University of Luxembourg in 2015. In 2017 she was appointed as Director of Qatar Biobank having been acting direct for the previous 2 years. She has led and motivated the team through accreditation and certifications
for ISO standards 9001: 2015 and 27001: 2013 as well as CAP accreditation for the laboratories as well as the design and implementation of the COVID 19 Biorepository. Dr Nahla Afifi has numerous grants and published research
in her field of expertise. She is an active member in several international societies’ including ESBB, AAA, ASIP and ISBER and has been part of scientific organizing committees and co-chair for ISBER Annual Meeting and Exhibitions.
She participates in National Committees in Qatar for Diabetes, Dementia and Diabetes and Cardiovascular disease.
Olga Kofanova, PhD in Cryobiology, currently works at the Luxembourg Institute of Health (LIH), Integrated BioBank of Luxembourg (IBBL) as the Leader of IBBL unit ‘Production Quality & Proficiency Team’. As an accredited and certified biobank, IBBL
operates under a strict quality management system and Olga plays a key role in implementing and improving the quality management system in accordance with ISO 9001:2015 and ISO 17025:2017. She is a national delegate in standardisation
and a member of the technical standards committees at the Luxembourg Institute of Standardisation, Accreditation, Safety and Quality of Products and Services (ILNAS). Olga also manages projects at IBBL with her major scientific
interest being focused on the impact of pre-analytical variables on biospecimen sample quality in order to develop evidence-based standards for use of human biospecimens in research. This involves biospecimen collection, processing,
and storage method optimization, including aspects of sample identification and the development of novel quality control tools and assays for biorepositories. Since 2011, Olga has been actively involved in the developing of IBBL
Biospecimen Proficiency Testing (PT) Program. As the Coordinator of the PT program since 2020, Olga plays a key role in implementing new Biospecimen Proficiency Testing schemes and ensures the PT operations to be compliant with
the principles of ISO 17043:2010 (Proficiency Testing).
Rocío Aguilar-Quesada, PhD in Biochemistry and M.S. in Biobanks and use of human biological samples for biomedical research, she has been Technical Manager of the Andalusian Public Health System Biobank in Granada since 2009. She is ISBER Regional Ambassador
for the EMEA Region and has contributed to the 5th edition of the ISBER Best Practices, being awarded the ISBER 2024 Special Service Award for her role as co-chair of the ISBER 2023 Regional Meeting in Granada. She
participates in different ESBB and ISBER Working Groups related to quality assurance, biospecimen science and ELSI. Within the framework of the Spanish ISCIII Biobanks and Biomodels Platform, Rocío has been coordinating
the ELSI Working Group. As a result of these collaborations, she has authored a variety of publications.
Mieke De Wilde is a Master of Science in Biology and Biochemistry from Belgium. She has over ten years of experience in biobanking. She was involved in the practical startup and daily management of Tumorbank@UZA in the Antwerp University Hospital. Over
the years, she specialized into biobank quality management. As a Quality Manager, she worked for the Biobank Antwerp and Biobank Iridium network. She’s involved as a member in ESBB and ISBER, volunteering in initiatives
focusing on biobank quality management. She’s a national expert for Belgium in the ISO Technical Committee 276 Biotechnology – Working group on Biobanking. Since 2022, she chairs the ISBER Standard Committee, including
the Steering Committee that oversaw the development of the fifth edition of ISBER Best Practices. She’s one of the ISBER 2023 Special Services Award winners. She’s currently employed at BBMRI.be as a Quality Coordinator
to coordinate B3-ISO, a stepwise quality improvement project towards the implementation of ISO20387 in Belgium, that is funded by an ESFRI-FED grant. This project supports biobanks with guidance, information, the establishment
of an audit program, and harmonization initiatives in IT, ELSI and Sustainability.
