How to Request Access

Descriptive information about the studies collected in BRADS is available online and can be found by browsing the documents in BRADS Collections on this site.

Data Sets and Biospecimens

To access the actual data sets or biospecimens, a proposal is required. Proposals can be submitted on an ongoing basis. All proposals will be evaluated for scientific merit. For ethical review, the BRADSC will generally rely on the investigators’ approval of their proposal by their respective institutional review board (IRB). The BRADSC reserves the right to have the NICHD IRB review any proposal even if the requesting investigators have already have IRB approval from their institution. Once a proposal has been approved, a Data Use Agreement (DUA) will be signed by both the approved investigator and NICHD.

Proposals Must Include:

• Specific Aims
• Background and Public Health Significance
• Research Design and Methods:
  
  • Data requests should specify the exact variables or give an expectation of findings in archival material.
  • Biospecimen requests should include detailed proposed laboratory methods including validity and reliability.
  • Given the age of many of the biospecimens, the BRADS Committee might request a pilot be completed before all specimens requested are released.
  • The volume of specimen of the number of samples requested must be specified.
  • The proposal must include a justification for determination of the study sample size and/or a power calculation.
  • As biospecimens are a limited resource, proposals should clearly state how much material is necessary to complete the proposed analysis, with emphasis on using the least amount of material possible.
• Clinical Significance or Results
• Qualifications
• Period of Performance
• Funding

More detailed information regarding proposals can be found in the BRADS Program Synopsis