The Tissue and Data Acquisition and Analysis Core Shared Resource (TDAAC), established in 2002, is a VCU Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center (MCC) and Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) institutionally supported resource co-directed by Michael Idowu, M.D., M.P.H. and Jennifer Koblinski, Ph.D. TDAAC serves as a biorepository for VCU, MCC, and collaborating outside institutions by acquiring and banking human cancers and adjacent normal tissues, as well as hematological samples for use in their research. The overall objective of TDAAC is to support translational research at MCC by functioning as the primary fresh-frozen tissue acquisition and processing facility for human solid tissue and hematopoietic specimens. Additionally, TDAAC provides downstream histology and pathology services for research involving human and animal tissue, including tissue microarrays (TMAs), automated immunohistochemistry, multiplex immunofluorescence, multiplex in situ hybridization, and quantitative pathology. This also includes grossing, processing, embedding, sectioning, and H&E staining of frozen and formalin-fixed paraffin embedded samples.
The broad, long-range objectives of TDAAC are to provide a gateway through which investigators involved in MCC investigator-initiated studies and clinical trials can acquire the human tissue samples required to support their research, ensuring the safeguard of sample acquisition for patient care, and to preserve the molecular integrity of the specimens. This is done through the aegis of the VCU IRB-approved “Tissue Acquisition System to Support Cancer Research” (TASSCR) protocol, which can supply specimens to a biorepository supporting cancer research through acquisition of residual tumor and normal tissue samples along with informed consent from patients. Samples can thus be provided under an anonymous honest broker system.
In addition, TDAAC collects tissue, hematopoietic, and other researcher-specific samples that support investigator-initiated, IRB- approved research projects or clinical trials. All frozen tissue specimens banked in TDAAC have a corresponding formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded counterpart in the Department of Pathology archives. Patients who sign the TDAAC informed consent documentation agree to have their residual tissues and/or blood utilized for any research question, including genomic data and health information for translational research. In addition, TDAAC banks hematopoietic specimens by cryopreserving mononuclear cells for future assays that may require primary cell culture. Furthermore, TDAAC seeks to educate the MCC and VCU research community with respect to biobanking and methods for downstream histopathologic analysis of human and animal tissues, and provide consultation and support for study development, experimental design, scientific publications, and grant applications.
