Introduction

Decentralized healthcare is changing how medical data is managed and shared by placing control in the hands of patients and enabling structured collaboration among healthcare institutions, biorepositories, researchers, and service providers. AminoChain applies blockchain technology to support a model where patients maintain ownership of their medical records and control access through secure, permissioned sharing.

In conventional healthcare systems, patient data is often fragmented across multiple platforms, limiting comprehensive access and slowing care coordination. AminoChain introduces a decentralized infrastructure that addresses this fragmentation by enabling consistent, verifiable, and privacy-preserving access to Electronic Health Records (EHRs). Patients can share their data with multiple providers or researchers without relying on centralized intermediaries, which helps to reduce administrative delays and improve decision-making.

The system supports a framework for clinical data sharing that preserves patient privacy while enabling researchers to access large, anonymized datasets. This structure contributes to medical research by allowing for timely data analysis, improved reproducibility, and broader representation in clinical studies. It supports the development of evidence-based practices and the advancement of data-driven approaches in personalized healthcare.

What is AminoChain?

AminoChain is a decentralized infrastructure layer for healthcare built to connect enterprise medical institutions, biorepositories, and developers. Its shared goal is to restore ownership, transparency, and access to patients and researchers.

It is also a blockchain-based platform designed to support The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) compliance in managing and exchanging healthcare data. It provides an infrastructure for companies, research networks, non-profit organizations, and independent scientists to access and build with regulatory-compliant clinical and biomedical data.

Source: AminoChain

The platform extends beyond improving the distribution of biosamples. It is structured to support the development of a new data-driven bioeconomy focused on transparency, collaboration, and patient engagement. Its objectives include streamlining clinical research and development, facilitating partnerships between academic and industry stakeholders, and ensuring that patients derive direct benefits from participating in research initiatives.

Funding

​AminoChain successfully raised $5 million in a seed funding round led by Andreessen Horowitz’s a16z, with participation from Cercano, Antler, LightShift, Superscript, Alumni Ventures, and other investors. AminoChain previously raised $2 million in a Pre-Seed round of financing, bringing the total funding to $7M, as of the time of writing (April 2025).

Team

Caspar Barnes

Caspar Barnes is the Founder of AminoChain. He graduated from Columbia University and Harvard Medical School. Caspar’s journey with AminoChain began at Columbia University, where he was inspired by the Entrepreneurship in Biotechnology course.

Maximilian Matthews

Maximilian Mathews is the Software Development Manager at AminoChain. He is an engineer who focuses on building solutions at the intersection of blockchain and healthcare to improve the handling of biosamples.

Jelani Clarke

Dr. Jelani Clarke has been the Chief Business Development Officer at AminoChain since January 2024. He previously served as the Executive Lead at DeSciWorld and Associate Scientist at adMare BioInnovations.

Main Features of AminoChain

Specimen Center Marketplace

The Specimen Center is AminoChain’s flagship application. It is a decentralized marketplace where researchers, hospitals, and biorepositories can connect peer-to-peer. The application is designed to streamline the discovery and acquisition of biospecimens, eliminating the inefficiencies of traditional procurement.

Researchers can search for available specimens using metadata filters (like sample type, collection method, or diagnosis), initiate requests, and manage transactions within a secure, transparent interface. The goal is to remove silos, reduce delays, and maximize the scientific utility of every biospecimen in the network.

Amino Node Integration

To onboard institutions without disrupting their existing workflows, AminoChain developed the Amino Node. This modular software layer integrates directly with clinical systems like Electronic Medical Records (EMRs) and laboratory information systems. The Node translates institutional data into a standardized format compatible with the AminoChain network, preserving institutional autonomy while enabling interoperability.

The Node also facilitates permissioned access, ensuring that data shared through the network complies with privacy laws such as the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

NFT-Based Biospecimen Representation

AminoChain brings a novel application of NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens) into biomedicine. Each biospecimen is a tokenized digital asset on-chain, linked to metadata such as collection details, diagnosis, consent status, and storage conditions.

These NFTs serve as immutable records of existence and provenance. They are not for trading like art collectibles but as verifiable pointers to real-world assets, enabling traceability, access control, and smart contract automation for downstream usage.

Consent and Compensation Mechanism

One of AminoChain’s most disruptive features is its patient-first architecture. Every time a patient or donor donates a biospecimen, they can set preferences around consent; who can use it, for what purpose, and for how long. These preferences are enforced via smart contracts. Patients are eligible for compensation if the specimen is later used in commercial research.

This mechanism redefines patient engagement by turning donors into stakeholders, incentivizing participation, and ensuring ethical alignment between research and those it aims to serve.

How Does AminoChain Work?

AminoChain operates a decentralized network of biobanks where researchers can discover and access biospecimens. By representing biosamples as Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) on the blockchain, the platform ensures traceability and authenticity, streamlining the sample acquisition and utilization process.

AminoChain offers a software called the Amino Node that integrates with existing tech stacks like Electronic Medical Records (EMRs) and Inventory Management in hospitals and biobanks.

It standardizes and harmonizes data, allowing institutions to maintain custody of their data while still participating in a neutral, interoperable network. It also allows developers with access to data to create various patient-centric applications.

The first flagship app on AminoChain is the Specimen Center, a decentralized, peer-to-peer marketplace for biosamples like tissue, blood, and saliva. It enables biobanks to make their inventory discoverable, cuts down sample acquisition time from months to minutes, and, most importantly, allows patients to track the journey of their samples, learn from the research generated, and earn compensation if their biosamples are monetized.

How Does AminoChain Benefit Medical Research

Transparency

With blockchain’s immutable ledger, AminoChain ensures that every transaction (the sharing, licensing, or commercial use of biosamples) is securely recorded. This transparency helps rebuild trust between patients and the medical research community.

Patient Empowerment

Patients and biosample donors can monitor the lifecycle of their samples, access information about derived research outcomes, and even earn revenue when their samples contribute to commercially successful outcomes. This benefit-sharing model addresses longstanding ethical concerns regarding patient consent and ownership.

Interoperability

The standardized data format facilitated by the Amino Node enables seamless integration and efficient data sharing across various medical institutions, reducing the traditional process of locating, licensing, and transferring samples to a much faster, streamlined experience.

Decentralization in Healthcare: Use Cases Beyond Cryptocurrency

Source: Acropolium

Originally designed to enable peer-to-peer transactions, blockchain technology has evolved to find valuable applications across various sectors, including healthcare. Its decentralized and secure nature addresses several long-standing challenges, leading to innovative solutions that enhance patient care, data management, and operational efficiency. According to Acropolium, the blockchain-in-healthcare market, valued at $831.54 million in 2024, is projected to reach $178.91 billion by 2034, indicating rapid adoption and investment in this technology.

A primary application of blockchain in healthcare is the management of Electronic Health Records (EHRs). Current systems often suffer from data fragmentation and limited interoperability between providers. Blockchain technology can operate a model where individuals can grant or revoke access to their records. This enhances data integrity and continuity of care and empowers patients to maintain control over their personal health information.

In biomedical research, blockchain improves transparency and reproducibility. Clinical trial data stored on-chain cannot be altered retroactively, ensuring that outcomes remain verifiable. It can also support secure, anonymized data sharing between institutions, promoting broader collaboration and enabling researchers to access diverse datasets while maintaining compliance with privacy regulations such as HIPAA and GDPR.

Blockchain technology can improve traceability and authenticity for pharmaceutical supply chains. Every transaction (from manufacturing to distribution) is recorded, reducing the risk of counterfeit drugs and ensuring compliance with regulatory standards.

Another area of application is insurance claims processing. Blockchain can automate claims validation using smart contracts, reducing administrative overhead and minimizing fraud. Verified medical events can trigger payments without manual intervention, resulting in faster and more transparent settlements.

In Telemedicine and IoT-based remote patient monitoring, health data generated by wearable devices can be recorded securely on a blockchain, providing care providers with real-time access to vital information.

While integration with legacy systems and regulatory considerations remain limiting factors, the real-world applications of blockchain in healthcare show considerable potential.

Differences Between AminoChain and Traditional Biobanking Infrastructure

​Siloed operations, limited data accessibility, and minimal patient involvement have long characterized traditional biobanking infrastructures. AminoChain introduces a transformative approach by leveraging blockchain technology to create a transparent, interoperable, and patient-centric biobanking ecosystem. Below is a comparative analysis highlighting the key differences:​

Data Access

Traditional Biobanks: Operate independently with proprietary systems, leading to fragmented data storage. Researchers often face challenges in locating and accessing biospecimens, resulting in duplicated efforts and underutilization of valuable samples

AminoChain: Utilizes the Amino Node, a software package that integrates with existing medical institutions’ technology stacks, such as Electronic Medical Records (EMRs) and Inventory Management Systems. This integration harmonizes and standardizes data into a standard format, facilitating seamless interoperability across collaborators.

Traceability

Traditional Biobanks: Often lack robust mechanisms for tracking the journey of biospecimens post-collection. Donors and researchers have limited visibility into how samples are used, raising concerns about consent and ethical oversight.

AminoChain: Implements blockchain technology to tokenize biospecimens, representing each sample as a Non-Fungible Token (NFT) linked to detailed metadata, including collection details, donor consent, and usage history. This ensures an immutable and transparent record of each sample’s lifecycle, enhancing stakeholder trust.

Consent Management

Traditional Biobanks: Typically involve one-time consent processes where donors relinquish control over their samples without ongoing insights or participation in subsequent uses

AminoChain: Empowers patients by utilizing smart contracts to automate and enforce consent preferences. Donors can specify how their biospecimens are used and are informed about their samples’ applications. Additionally, patients may receive compensation if their samples contribute to commercial endeavors, fostering a more ethical and participatory model.

News on AminoChain

AminoChain Specimen Center Launch

Source: AminoChain

AminoChain has officially launched its flagship product, the Specimen Center, a decentralized marketplace connecting researchers with biorepositories. The platform enables seamless, peer-to-peer access to biospecimens, streamlining scientific discovery while ensuring institutions retain control and patients remain stakeholders.

Conclusion

AminoChain is developing a layer 2 blockchain protocol that connects corporate medical institutions and supports creating user-owned decentralized healthcare applications. Its flagship product, the Specimen Center, functions as a biospecimen marketplace, allowing researchers to query and license samples across a distributed network of biobanks.

Investor backing from Andreessen Horowitz’s a16z and Cercano signals increasing interest in Decentralized Science (DeSci), a movement focused on enhancing transparency and collaboration in scientific research through blockchain infrastructure.

However, adopting this model must address ongoing concerns, including resistance from traditional medical institutions to emerging technologies, and the need to ensure data privacy and security for sensitive medical information on decentralized platforms.