title: Baobab Laboratory Information Management System: Development of an Open-Source Laboratory Information Management System for Biobanking.
abstract: A laboratory information management system (LIMS) is central to the informatics infrastructure that underlies biobanking activities. To date, a wide range of commercial and open-source LIMSs are available and the decision to opt for one LIMS over another is often influenced by the needs of the biobank clients and researchers, as well as available financial resources. The Baobab LIMS was developed by customizing the Bika LIMS software ( www.bikalims.org ) to meet the requirements of biobanking best practices. The need to implement biobank standard operation procedures as well as stimulate the use of standards for biobank data representation motivated the implementation of Baobab LIMS, an open-source LIMS for Biobanking. Baobab LIMS comprises modules for biospecimen kit assembly, shipping of biospecimen kits, storage management, analysis requests, reporting, and invoicing. The Baobab LIMS is based on the Plone web-content management framework. All the system requirements for Plone are applicable to Baobab LIMS, including the need for a server with at least 8 GB RAM and 120 GB hard disk space. Baobab LIMS is a server-client-based system, whereby the end user is able to access the system securely through the internet on a standard web browser, thereby eliminating the need for standalone installations on all machines.
authors.affiliation: 1 South African National Bioinformatics Institute, SA Medical Research Council Unit, University of the Western Cape , Bellville, South Africa .|2 Bridging Biobanking and Biomolecular Research Across Europe and Africa (B3Africa) Consortium.
authors.forename: Hocine
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Bendou
authors.affiliation: 1 South African National Bioinformatics Institute, SA Medical Research Council Unit, University of the Western Cape , Bellville, South Africa .
authors.forename: Lunga
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Sizani
authors.affiliation: 2 Bridging Biobanking and Biomolecular Research Across Europe and Africa (B3Africa) Consortium.|3 National Health Laboratory Services, Tygerberg Hospital , Cape Town, South Africa .
authors.forename: Tim
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Reid
authors.affiliation: 2 Bridging Biobanking and Biomolecular Research Across Europe and Africa (B3Africa) Consortium.|3 National Health Laboratory Services, Tygerberg Hospital , Cape Town, South Africa .|4 Division of Haematology, Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University , Tygerberg, South Africa .|5 Human, Heredity and Health in Africa (H3Africa) Consortium .
authors.forename: Carmen
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Swanepoel
authors.affiliation: 1 South African National Bioinformatics Institute, SA Medical Research Council Unit, University of the Western Cape , Bellville, South Africa .
authors.forename: Toluwaleke
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ademuyiwa
authors.affiliation: 2 Bridging Biobanking and Biomolecular Research Across Europe and Africa (B3Africa) Consortium.|6 Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Karolinska Institutet , Stockholm, Sweden .
authors.forename: Roxana
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Merino-Martinez
authors.affiliation: 2 Bridging Biobanking and Biomolecular Research Across Europe and Africa (B3Africa) Consortium.|7 Institute of Pathology, Medical University , Graz, Austria .|8 BBMRI-ERIC, Common Service IT, Graz, Austria .
authors.forename: Heimo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Meuller
authors.affiliation: 2 Bridging Biobanking and Biomolecular Research Across Europe and Africa (B3Africa) Consortium.|3 National Health Laboratory Services, Tygerberg Hospital , Cape Town, South Africa .|4 Division of Haematology, Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University , Tygerberg, South Africa .|5 Human, Heredity and Health in Africa (H3Africa) Consortium .
authors.forename: Akin
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Abayomi
authors.affiliation: 1 South African National Bioinformatics Institute, SA Medical Research Council Unit, University of the Western Cape , Bellville, South Africa .|2 Bridging Biobanking and Biomolecular Research Across Europe and Africa (B3Africa) Consortium.|5 Human, Heredity and Health in Africa (H3Africa) Consortium .
authors.forename: Alan
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Christoffels
mesh_terms: D018070:Biological Specimen Banks; D019451:Information Management; D007753:Laboratories; D012984:Software; D014186:Transportation
keywords: Baobab; LIMS; Plone; biobank; open source