CCMB unveils new Next Gen Sequencing facility
Dr Harsh Vardhan, Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare, Science and Technology and Earth Sciences, inaugurated Next Generation Sequencing (NSG) facility at Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB), a CSIR lab in Hyderabad, Telangana.
About Next Generation Sequencing (NSG) Facility
It would include technology for high genome sequencing and also diagnostic sequencing of clinical samples. It is 4th such facility in the country.
It is a state-of-the-art genome sequencing facility that can sequence 18,000 samples in 8 minutes. It is acquired at a cost of Rs.8 crore.
It can sequence 30 human genomes a day (or 384 diagnostic samples in a day). It would costs around ₹1 lakh to sequence one genome using this facility.
Applications:
It would help prenatal genetic screening and counselling, thus generating large scale genomic data critical for diagnosis and therapy.
It would especially help patients suffering from rare genetic disorders.
It would help in finding drugs for rare genetic diseases, which drug industry does not manufacture because of high costs involved.
By using NSG facility, scientists hope to find genetic cause of rare diseases and develop kits that can be used to find population at risk of genetic/other rare diseases
Significance: Much of existing body of knowledge for therapies for genetic diseases comes from studies done with Caucasian populations but this new NSG facility would help in generating large-scale genomic data from Indian populations, which was critical for genetic diagnosis and therapy.
Way Ahead: There is a need to develop Scientific Social Responsibility (SSR) and ensure that research is transferred to industry, and help public at large.
Related Posts
Month: Current Affairs - July, 2019