All of Us Biobank - FAQs.pdf
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- Solicitation number
- OTA-25-002
About this file
This is a FAQ document for the All of Us Biobank Research Opportunity Announcement (ROA) OTA-25-002, issued by the NIH Office of the Director on December 13, 2024. The FAQ addresses four key questions related to the proposal submission process and biobank operations.
Key details include: proposers may include new Directors/MPIs in Phase I submissions even if not yet onboarded; Letters of Support are permitted with a 3-page limit in Appendix 1; all documentation for Sections 8.1.2 and 8.1.3 must be submitted in a single proposal via eRA ASSIST; and extensive information about current and future automation capabilities, including handling 800-1,200 participant collections daily using LIMS, automated QC systems, liquid-handling robots, and automated storage systems. The document indicates that future automation will incorporate AI and machine learning for predictive analytics, inventory management, and enhanced quality control. Questions for this ROA must be submitted by December 13, 2024 at 3pm EST.
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National Institutes of Health (NIH) Office of the Director (OD) All of Us Research Program
Frequently Asked Questions
All of Us Biobank
No. OTA-25-002
Issue Date: December 13, 2024
General Notes About the FAQ This FAQ is provided to proposers to answer questions that have been received about the Biobank Research Opportunity Announcement (ROA). The FAQ includes questions that were asked in advance of the Biobank webinar, and subsequent to the webinar. As additional questions are asked by proposers, the FAQ will be updated and reposted as quickly as possible.
Proposers who wish to submit additional questions about this ROA may do so on or before 13 December 2024, 3pm EST. Questions received after the deadline will not be answered. The questions should be concise and direct. For each question submitted, the relevant section, page, and paragraph of the ROA must be referenced. Questions should be submitted to the email address listed in section 2.1 of the ROA.
FAQ-1: Questions and Answers [13 December 2024]
1. Question: There are 2 new directors identified and being hired but they won’t be available before the submission deadline. They’ll be MPIs and we would like to include them in the Phase I submission. Is this acceptable?
Answer: Proposers are not required to have Directors/MPIs onboarded at the time of Phase I submission. You may include the new hires in your Phase I proposal.
2. Question: Are we permitted to submit Letters of Support, and if so, in what format would you like these (e.g., single PDF attachment in the Appendix)? Would they have a page limit or other limit?
Answer: Letters of Support are permitted; not to exceed 3 pages total in Appendix 1
3. Question: Including multiple PIs in ASSIST provides a place for a “Leadership Plan” document. Is that where we should attach the Leadership and Management Plan outlined in section 8.1.2 of the ROA, or is this the area for a standard disclaimer of MPI collaboration and conflict resolution and the Leadership and Management Plan should be an additional attachment later?
Answer: All documentation requested based on Sections 8.1.2 and 8.1.3 must be included in a single proposal document submitted via eRA ASSIST
4. Question: For All of Us, what is the current standard for automation and what is the future outlook for automation?
Answer: In our current biospecimen collection workflows and sample processing pipelines, automation is primarily focused on ensuring capacity, precision and scalability.
These systems are designed to manage high volume biospecimen collections across the nation, supporting on average 800-1,200 participant collections per day. Automation is central to operations such as categorizing, processing, labeling, aliquoting, storing, and distributing high-quality and highly diverse biospecimens. Key automation technologies include Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) for tracking samples and managing metadata, automated QC systems for consistency, liquid-handling robots for precise sample processing, and automated storage and retrieval system for efficient sample access.
Looking to the future, automation in biobank will evolve to meet the growing complexity of multi-omics research and advanced biomedical technologies. For instance, next-generation robotic systems will provide greater precision and flexibility, enabling biobank to handle more complex workflows and custom processing requirements.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is poised to play a transformative role in predictive analytics for inventory management, identifying patterns in sample usage, resolving conflicts in sample requests across multiple studies, and optimizing storage for access efficiency.
Machine learning algorithms will enhance quality control measures by detecting anomalies in sample quality matrices and improving operational reliability. These innovations will allow biobanks to scale operations and adapt to the changing demands of modern research.
In summary, the current focus of automation is on enhancing accuracy, efficiency, and throughput to support high-volume operations. Ideally, the future of automation will emphasize intelligent, integrated, and adaptive systems that can revolutionize biobank management. These advancements will be essential for meeting the increasingly complex requirements of cutting-edge biomedical research, ensuring biobanks remain vital resources for innovation and discovery.
END OF FAQ-1
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