Philip CE, Faysal H, Quinney SK, Sadovsky Y, Haas DM.

Biopreservation and Biobanking. 2026.

Concerns about variability in how biospecimens are collected and processed have long been cited as a barrier to cross-cohort collaboration in maternal and infant research. This descriptive review examined publicly available protocols and standard operating procedures from 10 COPPER-affiliated biobanks and 8 major international cohorts to assess how well pre-analytical practices align across institutions. Across specimen types including maternal blood, urine, umbilical cord blood, placenta, breast milk, amniotic fluid, and infant dried blood spots, the review found strong convergence in the parameters that matter most: collection timing, processing temperature, centrifugation conditions, aliquoting strategies, and long-term storage at ultralow temperatures, making existing biospecimen resources readily usable for collaborative research. COPPER represents an ideal platform for investigators seeking to leverage these harmonized resources for impactful cross-cohort collaboration.

Philip CE, Faysal H, Quinney SK, Feng S, Haas DM.

BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics & Gynaecology. 2026;133(7):1505-1506.

Early prediction of pre-eclampsia requires access to biospecimens collected in early pregnancy, but these samples are often scattered across multiple biobanks. This study demonstrated how COPPER can identify and connect early-gestation biospecimens and clinical data across repositories, enabling researchers to assemble larger cohorts for biomarker discovery and validation. Using the COPPER network, investigators identified up to 112 cases of early-onset pre-eclampsia with samples collected before 16 weeks' gestation, demonstrating the value of centralized biospecimen identification for collaborative perinatal precision-medicine research. 

Faysal H, Quinney SK, Haas DM.

American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology MFM. 2024;6(3):101304.

Biomarker research in pregnancy and pediatrics is hampered by fragmented access to biospecimens held across many separate biobanks with differing catalogues and metadata. The Collaborative Online Perinatal & Pediatric Repository (COPPER) project addresses this gap with a centralised, searchable database that aggregates information on biobanks and their specimens—including blood, cord blood, urine, placental tissue, breast milk, and DNA/genomic data—filterable by specimen, participant, and collection attributes. By improving discoverability of existing resources, COPPER aims to facilitate global collaborations, reduce redundant collection, and accelerate maternal–pediatric biomarker research.