By Chris Stone
I’m a scientist who started out in veterinary microbiology in excess of 35 years ago.
I also spent over 10 years working in Clinical Virology, mainly on HIV-1 drug resistance.
It was while working in the field of HIV-1 Clinical Trials that the importance of Biobanking really hit home. I had the privilege of being involved in mono, duel and triple therapy studies where samples were taken over time hence the development of drug resistance could be analysed within individuals. Such samples are irreplaceable and hence priceless.
Of course this is only one area where biobanking has been critical to drug development. Biobanks are also key in the support of personalized medicine in both Cell and Gene Therapy as well as many other areas.
For the last 16 years I’ve been directly involved in Biobanking and inventory management. For the past year I’ve been the Biobank Manager at Advent Bioservices.
Advent has become a leading Cell Therapy Contract Development & Manufacturing Organisation (CDMO) and operates a fully licensed state-of-the-art facility in Sawston near Cambridge. In 2022, the company opened the Biobank facility, to which I was proudly appointed to manage. The remit was to not only provide a service to Advent, but also to other companies that require such services. Clients have provided positive feedback which I’m proud to say is displayed on our website.
In a such environmentally challenging business, and as a company that cares about all aspects of the business, Advent aims to provide high quality service while actively researching and finding solutions that minimise impact on the environment.
On site we generate our own liquid nitrogen and we utilize high efficiency freezers.
Since being at Advent I have been constantly impressed with the fantastic team attitude where everyone is willing to go out of their way to help.
Working for Advent is great because it gives you the opportunity to further develop professionally. If you partner with Advent you can rest assured your invaluable samples are safe in our hands.
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