title: Vejle Diabetes Biobank - a resource for studies of the etiologies of diabetes and its comorbidities.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Carefully designed and established biobanks are considered one of the most essential resources to foster biomedical research as they provide cost-effective and rapid access to a vast variety of biological materials and related anthropometrics allowing for testing of various biomarkers as well as numerous original and pertinent bioclinical hypotheses related to human disease etiology and prognosis. The objective of the present study was to present the baseline data, design, and methods used for the establishment of the Vejle Diabetes Biobank. Further aims included assessment of the prevalence of diabetes and quality of diabetes treatment in a specified Danish region.
  
  
  METHODS
  The Vejle Diabetes Biobank was established from 2007 to 2010 as a regional Biobank containing blood, DNA, and urine samples from patients with diabetes and a gender- and age-matched control population aged 25-75 years. Anthropometrics were obtained by physical examination, questionnaires, and interviews at the time of inclusion into the Biobank. The cohort was linked to the Danish Civil Registration System, the Danish National Patient Registry, and the Danish National Prescription Registry.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In total, 4,255 nondiabetic individuals and 3,320 patients with diabetes were included. Type 2 diabetes (T2D) patients had a higher body mass index (30 kg/m2) than type 1 diabetes (T1D) patients (25 and 26 kg/m2in women and men, respectively) and control subjects (25 and 27 kg/m2in women and men, respectively). Fasting levels of plasma triglycerides and blood pressure were higher in T2D patients (1.5 mmol/L and 148/85 mmHg, respectively) compared with T1D patients (0.9 mmol/L and 139/81 mmHg, respectively), whereas glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), plasma high density lipoprotein, low density lipoprotein, and total cholesterol were lower in T2D patients (51 mmol/mol, 1.2 mmol/L, 2.2 mmol/L, and 4.2 mmol/L, respectively) compared with findings in T1D patients (61 mmol/mol, 1.6 mmol/L, 2.3 mmol/L, and 4.4 mmol/L, respectively). At the time of inclusion into the Biobank, 56% of the T2D patients and 25% of T1D patients had an HbA1c <7% (53 mmol/mol). Only 28% and 34% of the T2D patients, respectively, reached treatment target for blood pressure and lipids.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The Vejle Diabetes Biobank represents one of the largest open diabetes case-control cohorts in Denmark. The Biobank invites collaborative investigations of diabetes and diabetes complication etiologies as well as studies of prognostic or predictive biomarkers.
authors: Department of Clinical Immunology and Biochemistry, Lillebaelt Hospital, Vejle; Faculty of Health Sciences, Institute of Regional Health Research, University of Southern Denmark, Odense.
authors: Eva Rabing Brix
authors: ER
authors: Petersen
authors: Department of Clinical Immunology and Biochemistry, Lillebaelt Hospital, Vejle.
authors: Aneta Aleksandra
authors: AA
authors: Nielsen
authors: Department of Clinical Immunology and Biochemistry, Lillebaelt Hospital, Vejle.
authors: Henry
authors: H
authors: Christensen
authors: Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Basic Metabolic Research, Section of Metabolic Genetics, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen.
authors: Torben
authors: T
authors: Hansen
authors: Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Basic Metabolic Research, Section of Metabolic Genetics, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen.
authors: Oluf
authors: O
authors: Pedersen
authors: Department of Internal Medicine and Endocrinology, Lillebaelt Hospital, Vejle, Denmark.
authors: Cramer Kjeldahl
authors: CK
authors: Christensen
authors: Department of Clinical Immunology and Biochemistry, Lillebaelt Hospital, Vejle; Faculty of Health Sciences, Institute of Regional Health Research, University of Southern Denmark, Odense.
authors: Ivan
authors: I
authors: Brandslund
keywords: HbA1c; diabetes; diabetes Biobank resource; research database; type 2 diabetes