SLU Researcher Coordinates International Analysis Network

New large scale sequencing technology has revolutionized biomedical research and has expanded into many other fields of research. This new technology offers researchers a possibility to understand the importance of the genetic makeup in causing maladies in animals, plants and humans. Questions can be made in a totally different way thanks to the large scale methods.
NGS, Next Generation Sequencing, is, simply put, the new advanced methods of sequencing DNA, i.e. mapping the genes of a living being. When this started some years ago, it took years to sequence a large genome such as the first human genome, costing millions of euro. With the existing methods it can now be done in a week or so at a cost of a few thousand euros, and researchers expect it to soon be done in a day at a cost of around a thousand euro.
“Thanks to genome sequencing, we have new possibilities to study various life science problems in beings from bacteria, plants and bacteria and upwards in the evolutionary tree, to humans and other mammals. A problem is how to take care of and store these huge amounts of data produced”, says Erik Bongcam-Rudloff, researcher at SLU´s Department of Animal Breeding and Genetics.
”This is a project where frontline researchers from all across Europe cooperate. The leading research labs can now collaborate instead of inventing the wheel all over again. Receiving support from COST is very prestigious; out of a hundred applications, only three were accepted”, Bongcam-Rudloff says.
The network now supported by COST consists of researchers from 18 countries. COST, European Cooperation in Science and Technology, is one of Europe´s oldest frameworks for research support.