Publicly-funded biobanks and networks in East Asia

With the enactment of the Nagoya Protocol, international competitions to secure biological resources are intensifying. Biobanking is one of the many attempts to preserve biological resources and their information for the use in future research and development. Asian countries, especially China, Japan, and Korea are very active in biobanking activities under the strategic plans coordinated by their governments. They also proactively established networks for biobanks of Asia to facilitate resource and expertise sharing. Biobanks of these countries should furthermore standardize operating procedures and diversify funding sources for establishing stable operation systems.