The Human Tissues and Organs Research Resource (HTORR) provides the biomedical research community with human tissues for research. It is a leading source of human tissues, cells and organs for scientific research and is comprised of a nationwide network of 130 tissue source sites over 45 states, including organ procurement organizations, tissue banks, post-surgery and post-mortem donors. HTORR is supported by Office of Research Infrastructure Programs (ORIP) and other NIH institutes including NIAMS. The National Disease Research Interchange (NDRI), a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization, is the awarding organization for the HTORR Program (Grant number: U42 OD011158). 

HTORR provides the following services: 

• Access to a wide array of human biospecimens from normal and diseased donors from any body system
• Customized procurement in a variety of preservation formats including fresh, frozen, and fixed tissues suitable for various analytical techniques
• Biospecimens from both diseased and non-diseased surgical and post-mortem donors
• Timely responses to requests and 24/7 distribution
• Technical support to design studies utilizing human biospecimens
• Letters of support as a human tissue provider for investigator grant applications
• On-site logistics capabilities
• HTORR dedicated website for investigator inquiries 

To request biospecimens, interested investigators complete a simple application process and, once approved, their requests are fulfilled when matching donor tissues become available. HTORR can also provide a Letter of Support (LOS) and budgetary information for NIH grant applications. For information about how to set up a prospective tissue recovery or to request a LOS, please email the NDRI Scientific Services Department at research@ndriresource.org. As one of NIH funding agencies supporting the HTORR Program, NIAMS-funded investigators will be prioritized over investigators from institutes that do not support the program. 

To learn more about NDRI’s services, please refer to NDRI’s website.

Helpful link: ORIP Biomaterials Fact Sheet