Laboratory informatics

Laboratory informatics is the specialized application of information technology aimed at optimizing and extending laboratory operations. It encompasses data acquisition, instrument interfacing, laboratory networking, data processing, specialized data management systems (such as a chromatography data system), a laboratory information management system, scientific data management (including data mining and data warehousing), and knowledge management (including the use of an electronic lab notebook). It has become more prevalent with the rise of other "informatics" disciplines such as bioinformatics, cheminformatics and health informatics. Several graduate programs are focused on some form of laboratory informatics, often with a clinical emphasis. A closely related - some consider subsuming - field is Laboratory automation.

Sub-topics

• Laboratory information management system (LIMS)
• Laboratory information system (LIS)
• Chromatography data system (CDS)
• Electronic lab notebook (ELN)

Organizations

• Society for Laboratory Automation & Screening (SLAS)
• American Association for Clinical Chemistry (AACC)
• Institute for Laboratory Automation
• Laboratory Informatics Institute

Publications

• Journal of the Association for Laboratory Automation (JALA)
• American Laboratory

See also

• Electronic lab notebook
• Informatics

Further reading

• Nakagawa, Allen S. LIMS implementation and management. Cambridge: Royal Society of Chemistry, 1994
• Liscouski, Joe Laboratory and Scientific Computing a Strategic Approach. John Wiley & Sons, New York, 1995
• Gibbon, Gerst A Brief History of LIMS. Laboratory Automation and Information Management 1996, 32(1), 1-5
• Myers, J. D.; Fox-Dobbs, C.; Laird, J.; Le, Dai; Reich, D.; Curtz, T. Electronic laboratory notebooks for collaborative research. In Proceedings of the 5th International Workshops on Enabling Technologies: Infrastructure for Collaborative Enterprises (WET ICE'96) (WET-ICE '96) IEEE Computer Society, Washington, DC, USA, 1996, 47-.
• Paszko, Christine; Pugsley, Carol Considerations in selecting a laboratory information management system (LIMS). American Laboratory, 2000, 32(18), 38-42
• Paszko, Christine; Turner, Elizabeth; Hinton, Mary D. Laboratory Information Management Systems Revised & Expanded. CRC Press, 2001
• Tracy, Douglas S.; Nash, Robert A. A Validation Approach for Laboratory Information Management Systems. Journal of Validation Technology, 2002, 9(1), 6-14
• Perry, Douglas Laboratory Informatics: Origin, Scope, and its Place in Higher Education. Journal of the Association for Laboratory Automation, 2004, 9(6), 421 - 428
• Sterling, James D. Laboratory Automation Education. Journal of the Association for Laboratory Automation, 2004, 9(5), A11-A12
• Sterling, James D. Laboratory automation curriculum at Keck Graduate Institute. Journal of the Association for Laboratory Automation, 2004, 9(5), 331-335
• Taylor, Keith The status of electronic laboratory notebooks for chemistry and biology. Current Opinion in Drug Discovery & Development, 2006, 9(3): 348-353
• Wood, Simon Comprehensive Laboratory Informatics: A Multilayer Approach. American Laboratory, 2007, 39(16), 20-23
• Metrick, Gloria Three Issues of LIMS/Laboratory Informatics That Can Cost Money. American Laboratory, 2007, 39(21), 10-11
• Calva, Diana; Lehman, Mario An analysis of the possible applications of Artificial Intelligence Techniques to a Clinical Laboratory Information Management System. International Journal of Computer Science and Network Security, 2008, 8(12), 82-86
• Shah, Kim Elevating laboratory informatics to assist decision-making. Pharmaceutical Technology Europe, 2009, 21(5)