Biospecimens
Bioinformatics specialist, Dr. Qingrun Zhang, is available for consultation on routine analysis to all full and associate members of the Charbonneau Cancer Institute. Dr. Zhang supports a wide variety of research activities in bioinformatics, ranging from experimental design to statistical analysis of experimental data from large datasets including those produced by next generation sequencing. Dr. Zhang is available to provide: routine service (see below); training sessions for individuals or small groups to analyze data; collaborations as required for more complex projects.
Consultation (< 3 hrs) to develop a plan for your bioinformatics needs is free. However, thereafter a fee of $80/hr is charged for routine work or training sessions.
Research projects that involve extensive value-added contributions and innovative bioinformatic design, beyond the scope covered by routine analysis, are encouraged as collaborative interactions where user fees will not be applied.
Contact Dr. Qingrun Zhang or 403-220-2833 for more information
The following bioinformatics pipelines are currently available. More pipelines will be developed based on researchers’ interest.
-
Whole Exon Sequence
- Somatic/Germline mutation (SNV, Insertion and Deletion call)
- Somatic/Germline Structure Variants from Exome sequence
-
RNA sequence
- Differential Expression Analysis
- Transcript discovery
- Fusion gene analysis
- Viral Detection
-
Microarray data analysis
- Affymetrix chips
- Illumina chips
-
Pathway analysis
- Pathway analysis, gene set enrichment analysis
-
Mapping Study
- Genome Wide Association Mapping Study
-
Data Analysis
- Ribo-seq Data Analysis
check back later for more information
The Alberta Cancer Research Biobank (ACRB) has a large open access collection of samples from several types of cancer. These samples are annotated with clinically relevant data and are available to all researchers with ethics approved research plans.
The ACRB also works with academic investigators to support the targeted collection, processing and storage of biological cancer related samples that are needed for their studies.
-
Live-Cell Biobanking is accessible through an initiative supported by Charbonneau researchers.
-
Robotic processing of blood into serum, plasma and buffy coat fractions is available.
-
The ACRB has secure sample storage facilities, including nitrogen vapour (-1500C) and UltraLow (-800C) freezers.
-
Along with configurable inventory management software, dual monitoring of sample storage temperatures and emergency response are provided 24/7.
The Clark H. Smith Tumour and Related Tissue Bank is a biorepository at the University of Calgary that was established with the goal of advancing cancer research. We assist basic, translational and clinical cancer research by collecting and providing high quality tumour and blood samples, and their derivative biomolecules, to investigators. Specializing in neurologic and pediatric diseases, the bank has provided material to investigators not only within Calgary but also nationally and internationally.
Alberta’s Tomorrow Project - The largest research study ever undertaken in Alberta. Its primary goal is to discover more about what causes cancer, so that it may be prevented in the future.
