Skip to main content
Navigate back to homepage
Open search bar.
Open main navigation menu

Main navigation

  • Study
    UCL Portico statue
    Study at UCL

    Being a student at UCL is about so much more than just acquiring knowledge. Studying here gives you the opportunity to realise your potential as an individual, and the skills and tools to thrive.

    • Undergraduate courses
    • Graduate courses
    • Short courses
    • Study abroad
    • Centre for Languages & International Education
  • Research
    Tree-of-Life-MehmetDavrandi-UCL-EastmanDentalInstitute-042_2017-18-800x500-withborder (1)
    Research at UCL

    Find out more about what makes UCL research world-leading, how to access UCL expertise, and teams in the Office of the Vice-Provost (Research, Innovation and Global Engagement).

    • Engage with us
    • Explore our Research
    • Initiatives and networks
    • Research news
  • Engage
    UCL Print room
    Engage with UCL

    Discover the many ways you can connect with UCL, and how we work with industry, government and not-for-profit organisations to tackle tough challenges.

    • Alumni
    • Business partnerships and collaboration
    • Global engagement
    • News and Media relations
    • Public Policy
    • Schools and priority groups
    • Visit us
  • About
    UCL welcome quad
    About UCL

    Founded in 1826 in the heart of London, UCL is London's leading multidisciplinary university, with more than 16,000 staff and 50,000 students from 150 different countries.

    • Who we are
    • Faculties
    • Governance
    • President and Provost
    • Strategy
  • Active parent page: Population Health Sciences
    • Study
    • Research
    • Active parent page: Institutes and Schools
    • News
    • Events
    • About
    • People

The Baby Bio Bank

Breadcrumb trail

  • Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health
  • Research
  • Genetics and Genomic Medicine

Faculty menu

  • Current page: Baby Bio Bank
    • Information for Participants

Unlocking the Genetics of Healthy Pregnancy

The Baby Bio Bank (BBB) is a one-of-a-kind research resource created by University College London and Imperial College London, with funding from Wellbeing of Women. Its goal is to drive scientific breakthroughs in the four leading pregnancy complications — affecting 1 in 5 families trying to conceive:

  • Recurrent miscarriage
  • Preterm birth
  • Fetal growth restriction
  • Pre-eclampsia

We are one of the only biobanks globally to collect samples from all three members of the family — mother, father, and baby — enabling researchers to study both inherited and environmental factors.

A Globally Unique Collection

Over 54,000 biological samples were collected from 2,515 pregnancies between 8 weeks’ gestation and term, across three major London hospitals:

  • Chelsea and Westminster Hospital
  • Queen Charlotte’s & Chelsea Hospital
  • St Mary’s Hospital

These include blood, DNA, RNA, and tissue samples from mothers, fathers, and babies, along with richly annotated clinical data.

What’s Included in the Biobank

Samples:

Sample 1

  • Maternal samples (blood, urine, DNA/RNA), collected once during pregnancy
  • Paternal samples (blood, DNA)
  • Fetal and placental samples (cord blood, umbilical cord tissue, placental biopsies)

Pregnancy complications:

Sample 2

As well as pregnancy and maternal complications:

  • 204 were affected with fetal growth restriction (FGR)
  • 298 with recurrent miscarriage
  • 373 delivered before 37 weeks gestation (Preterm)
  • 140 complicated with pre-eclampsia
  • 106 pregnancies complicated by maternal diabetes

the biobank also contains samples from 958 healthy, uncomplicated pregnancies.

Clinical data:

Sample 3

Samples have been collected during pregnancy (from 8 weeks onward) and processed to the highest standards, with validated quality control using:

  • PCR
  • Sequencing
  • Agilent 2200 TapeStation
  • Nucleic acid integrity assessments

Our samples are proven suitable for:

  • Whole-exome sequencing
  • Genome-wide methylation analysis
  • qPCR, endpoint PCR, Sanger sequencing, and more

Access for Researchers

The Baby Bio Bank is open to qualified researchers from both academic and commercial institutions in the UK and internationally.

All applications are reviewed by the BBB Research Management Board. Approved projects must:

  • Have local R&D approval
  • Provide evidence of peer-reviewed funding
  • Sign a Material Transfer Agreement (MTA)

Researchers are expected to return generated data to the biobank, enhancing this shared resource.

To date, BBB samples have supported over 20 research projects worldwide.

How to Apply

  • Download the Application Form
  • Email the BBB Manager: nita.solanky@ucl.ac.uk
  • View Ethics Approval
  • View Biobank Protocol

Learn more: See the Impact of Our Samples

Information for Donors

Please note: The Baby Bio Bank is no longer accepting new donors, as collection was completed in 2015.

If you are a past participant and have questions about your donation, please contact the BBB Manager.

Impacts

To date 23 studies have been approved to use samples from the Baby Biobank. Publications from these and future studies will be posted here.

“In our research using samples from the UK Baby Biobank, we discovered a method to analyze tiny fragments of DNA from the placenta that circulate in a pregnant person's blood, known as cell-free placental DNA. By using a special technique called cfMeDIP-seq, we were able to focus on these DNA fragments and learn more about the health of the placenta without needing to perform invasive procedures.

We also found that this DNA from pregnancies affected by a condition called Intrauterine Growth Restriction (IUGR) had different patterns of DNA methylation—a natural process where chemical tags are added to DNA, which can influence how genes are turned on or off. By identifying these specific patterns, we could potentially spot pregnancies at risk of IUGR before any symptoms appear.

This work and these samples were integral in me obtaining my own independent faculty position as Assistant professor at McMaster University in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology.”

Samantha L Wilson, PhD, Assistant Professor , McMaster University

 

Review Article

  • The Baby Bio Bank-A Legacy for Researchers Worldwide into Common Complications of Pregnancy

Journal articles

  • Analysis of CDKN1C in fetal growth restriction and pregnancy Loss https://doi.org/10.12688/f1000research.15016.1
  • Investigation of the Annexin A5 M2 haplotype in 500 white European couples who have experienced recurrent spontaneous abortion: Reproductive BioMedicine Online (2015) 31, 681–688
  • Gestational disruptions in metabolic rhythmicity of the liver, muscle, and placenta affect fetal size, The FASEB Journal Vol.31, No.4 , pp:1698-1708, January, 2018
  • Emerging phenotypes linked to variants in SAMD9 and MIRAGE syndrome. DOI 10.3389/fendo.2022.953707

Contact Us

Baby Bio Bank Manager: nita.solanky@ucl.ac.uk

UCL footer

Visit

  • Bloomsbury Theatre and Studio
  • Library, Museums and Collections
  • UCL Maps
  • UCL Shop
  • Contact UCL

Students

  • Accommodation
  • Current Students
  • Moodle
  • Students' Union

Staff

  • Inside UCL
  • Staff Intranet
  • Work at UCL
  • Human Resources

UCL social media menu

  • Link to Soundcloud
  • Link to Flickr
  • Link to TikTok
  • Link to Youtube
  • Link to Instagram
  • Link to Facebook
  • Link to Twitter

University College London, Gower Street, London, WC1E 6BT

Tel: +44 (0) 20 7679 2000

© 2025 UCL

Essential

  • Disclaimer
  • Freedom of Information
  • Accessibility
  • Cookies
  • Privacy
  • Slavery statement
  • Log in