Centre for Microbiome Research · QUT
About AHMB
Building the world's most comprehensive biobank of human microbial isolates — from Australia, for researchers and innovators worldwide.
Who We Are
A world-class human microbiome biobank
The Australian Human Microbiome Biobank (AHMB) is a purpose-built human microbiome culture collection housed within the Centre for Microbiome Research (CMR) at Queensland University of Technology, located at the Translational Research Institute in Brisbane, Australia.
AHMB was established in 2023 following a competitive grant awarded through the Australian Government’s Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) National Critical Research Infrastructure program. The facility was purpose-built, including custom-designed anaerobic chambers and a high-throughput cultivation platform, developed in close collaboration with industry partners Microba Life Sciences, Cytek Biosciences and Illumina.
The biobank was officially opened on 19 June 2024, marking a significant milestone for Australian microbiome research and establishing AHMB as one of the most technically advanced human microbiome biobanking facilities in the world.
The Problem We're Solving
A fundamental gap in microbiome research
Despite significant advances in culture-independent sequencing, an estimated 70% of human gut microbiome species have not yet been successfully cultured. The inability to grow and study individual microbial strains in isolation has fundamentally limited our understanding of host–microbiome interactions.
This gap has hampered efforts to develop microbiome-based therapeutics and diagnostics for decades. Globally, microbiome research resources have been heavily concentrated in North America and Europe, and Australia had no equivalent until AHMB.
Addressing this gap requires a whole-body approach. Beyond the gut, AHMB supports the cultivation and biobanking of microorganisms from the skin, oral and vaginal microbiomes, broadening the scope of what is possible in human microbiome research.
Our Infrastructure
What makes AHMB technically distinctive
AHMB is built around a purpose-designed cultivation and characterisation pipeline that addresses the core technical challenges of human microbiome biobanking, from the recovery of oxygen-sensitive species through to whole genome sequencing, quality control and long-term cryopreservation.
High-throughput cultivation platform
Our custom built, atmosphere controlled anaerobic chambers maximise the recovery and growth of diverse microbial species, including obligate anaerobes and other fastidious organisms that cannot be cultured under standard laboratory conditions. The platform is enhanced by our PIXL colony picking robot (Singer Instruments), enabling high throughput and reproducible isolation of microbial colonies.
Spectral cell sorting
Leveraging the Cytek Aurora CS spectral cell sorter, AHMB employs high throughput cell sorting to isolate microorganisms from complex communities, enabling scalable and automated recovery of microbial populations. This approach enables the efficient processing of heterogeneous samples and supports the scalable recovery of diverse microbial populations.
Whole genome sequencing
Every isolate in the AHMB collection is characterised using Illumina short-read whole genome sequencing, enabling strain-level taxonomic assignment, antimicrobial resistance gene profiling, metabolic pathway annotation and comparative genomic analysis. For enquiries regarding sequencing services, contact the CMR team at cmr.services@qut.edu.au for more info.
Quality management & cryopreservation
All AHMB activities are conducted under a rigorous quality management system aligned with international biobanking standards, ensuring traceability, reproducibility and scientific integrity across the entire workflow. Authenticated isolates are cryopreserved under validated conditions with multiple stocks maintained per isolate, ensuring long-term viability and reliable access.
Custom Laboratory Information System (LIMS)
AHMB's laboratory operations are underpinned by VivoTrace, a LIMS purpose-built for AHMB by Australian scientific software company BioNex. VivoTrace handles end-to-end sample tracking, workflow management and data management across the entire AHMB pipeline, with full audit trail capabilities and integration with external systems.
Online isolate database
A publicly accessible online database is currently in development, providing researchers with searchable access to isolate identity, genome sequence data and culture maintenance information, enabling targeted strain selection prior to access requests.
Leadership
AHMB Director
The Australian Human Microbiome Biobank is directed by one of Australia's foremost microbiome scientists, operating within the world-class research environment of the Centre for Microbiome Research at QUT.
Professor Gene Tyson
AHMB & CMR Director · Queensland University of TechnologyProfessor Tyson is internationally recognised for the development and application of meta-omic and bioinformatic approaches to understanding microbial communities in clinical and environmental systems. As Director of both the Centre for Microbiome Research and the Australian Human Microbiome Biobank, he leads a multidisciplinary team of microbiologists and bioinformaticians working at the forefront of microbiome science.
Meet the full AHMB team →Collaborators
Our research collaborators
AHMB actively collaborates with leading researchers across Australia's academic, clinical and industry sectors. Our collaborators bring expertise spanning gastroenterology, dermatology, early life microbiome science, drug discovery, infectious disease and bioinformatics.
Funding
Supported by the Australian Government
The establishment of the Australian Human Microbiome Biobank is supported by a grant from the Australian Government Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) , awarded under the 2022 National Critical Research Infrastructure program.
The MRFF, established under the Medical Research Future Fund Act 2015, provides long-term sustainable funding for health and medical research initiatives that aim to improve health outcomes, quality of life and health system sustainability for all Australians. The MRFF reached maturity at $20 billion in July 2020.
This investment reflects the Australian Government's recognition of the AHMB as critical national research infrastructure and of the strategic importance of building Australia's capacity in microbiome science.
Ready to work with AHMB?
Access our authenticated isolate collection or engage our fee-for-service cultivation platform to support your microbiome research program.
Australian Human Microbiome Biobank · Centre for Microbiome Research, QUT
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