Biospecimens

Frozen Specimens Available

Tissues excised from patients undergoing cardiovascular surgeries including:

Atherosclerotic plaque from carotid or coronary endarterectomy procedures
Vascular tissue from aortic surgery
Heart valves from valve replacement or repair
Whole blood samples collected from patients undergoing various cardiovascular interventions including transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) and peripheral interventions
Frozen aliquots of plasma and PBMCs

Quality control reviews are conducted on human tissue samples.
Biopsecimens are not collected from individuals with known infectious illnesses.
Fetal biospecimens are not collected due to state and local statutes.

Clinical Data

The donor’s age, race and sex are provided with all biospecimens. Clinical information such medical history, medications, and clinical presentation are also collected and maintained in a secure database. Biospecimens and data are de-identified or de-linked before distributed to researchers unless he/she has specific IRB approval access to donor medical information.