Creation of a new prospective research biobank: the example of HUNT3

When establishing a biobank, there are a number of issues to consider with significant impact on the outcome of your efforts and the quality of your work. Some of the most relevant are: (1) study design, (2) the size and composition of your cohort, (3) the nature and desired quality of the biological material, and (4) how to handle, store, and retrieve your samples to maintain the best quality for future analyses. In this chapter, we in particular describe the organisation of biobanks derived from population-based prospective health surveys illustrated by the Norwegian HUNT study as a basis for more general considerations.