|
OpGen partners with UC Davis in 100K Genome Project
12-19-2012
EDIT CONNECT
SHARING OPTIONS:
GAITHERSBURG, Md.—OpGen, Inc. has announced the beginning of
a scientific and technical partnership with the University of California, Davis
(UC Davis) in cooperation with the 100K Genome Project, for the creation of
high-
resolution microbial genetic maps. UC Davis will integrate OpGen's Argus
Whole Genome Mapping System into its current DNA sequencing workflow for
sequence assembly and genome validation.
"OpGen's technology allows us to complete sequencing and
provide quality control of genomes drafted by data produced using short read
next-generation sequencing methods," sad Bart C. Weimer, Ph.D., professor
in
the Department of Population and Reproduction, School of Veterinary Medicine,
UC Davis, and director of The 100K Pathogen Genome Project. "Whole
Genome
Mapping provides an independent method to detect sequence variations and
misassemblies, and aids us in closing the gaps. Final Whole Genome Maps
will
assist health agencies in outbreak management of food borne diseases which
cause tremendous risk to public health."
The 100K Genome Project began this July between UC Davis,
the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Agilent Technologies. The
five-year initiative seeks to sequence the genomes of 100,000 infectious
microorganisms in hopes of accelerating diagnosis of food-borne illnesses. The
sequencing is taking place at the BGI@UC Davis facility.
Additional
collaborators include the U.S.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
and the U.S.
Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service.
The FDA will be providing more than 500 complete Salmonella whole-genome draft
sequences in addition to thousands of food pathogen strains for sequencing,
with the CDC providing additional strains and expertise. The U.S. Department
of
Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service will also provide strains for
UC Davis to sequence, and Agilent Technologies will contribute
funding while UC
Davis forms a consortium of additional project partners. Once sequences are
completed, they will be stored in the National Institutes
of Health's National
Center for Biotechnology Information's public database.
The addition of
OpGen's Whole Genome Mapping technology will
allow the project to create a new standard for high-quality microbial reference
genomes, which will be
used to monitor and manage international food-borne
microbial outbreaks and establish a global reference database for microbial
genomes of pathogens
such as Salmonella, Listeria and E. coli. Completed and validated genomes will be published,
and the FDA is calling for strict quality-control
standards for the database,
including validation of the gathered genomic data by two independent methods.
"We are pleased to be a partner in this collaboration with
UC Davis and the FDA in helping to set a high-quality, validated
standard for
this important reference database of microbes, which pose the greatest threats
to food safety and public health," said Douglas White,
Chief Executive Officer
of OpGen. "OpGen is committed to advancing public health and providing
actionable information to the healthcare community.
"
According to the CDC, approximately 48 million people
contract food-borne diseases each year
in the United States alone, with 128,000
resultant hospitalizations and 3,000 deaths. So far, there are 31 known
food-borne pathogens, which includes
familiar strains such as Salmonella,
Listeria and E. coli, many of which are
tracked by public health systems. Code: E12191201 Back |
Home |
FAQs |
Search |
Submit News Release |
Site Map |
About Us |
Advertising |
Resources |
Contact Us |
Terms & Conditions |
Privacy Policy
|