AsianScientist (Sep. 23, 2013) – BGI Tech Solutions Co. Ltd. and South Texas Accelerated Research Therapeutics (START) are collaborating on the San Antonio 1000 Cancer Genome Project (SA1kCGP), a groundbreaking cancer genome study designed to link genetic alterations that underlie different cancers to detailed clinical outcomes.
The Project is presently conducting whole genome sequencing of cancerous and normal tissue and blood samples from patients with one of ten cancers. All data generated from SA1kCGP will be made available publicly and freely to researchers and others worldwide.
Under the collaboration, the Shenzhen, China-based BGI Tech will provide next-generation high-throughput genomic sequencing to identify mutations associated with specific cancers, as well as gather, analyze and archive at BGI all genetic and clinical data generated through the tumor sequencing and clinical analyses.
START, which initiated SA1kCGP, will conduct patient recruitment, tumor sample acquisition, and collection of clinical patient information.
“We are excited to be collaborating with START on this extremely important, fundamentally different cancer genomic research,” stated Yingrui Li, CEO of BGI Tech. “SA1kCGP is unique as a privately funded project strategically structured to generate correlated, useful, and accessible clinical and genomic cancer data that could lead to beneficial, targeted cancer treatments.”
In contrast to past research where sample preservation was formaldehyde based, SA1kCGP will use fresh tissue for genomic analysis. SA1kCGP, launched in 2012, has already exceeded its initial goal of collecting samples from 1,000 patients.
With a 90 percent consent rate and growing pace of enrollment, 1,200 patients have agreed to date to have their tumor tissues sampled and to allow for the transplantation of their tumors to mouse models in order to target genetic mutations for drug selection and development.
SA1kCGP plans to sequence the cancer genomes of 10,000 patients at a fraction of the cost of other major cancer genome projects. The budget for SA1kCGP currently stands at $5 million, with approximately $1 million raised to date exclusively through community contributions.
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Source: BGI Tech.
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