Applied Biosystems Announces Software Development Initiative for Next-Generation Sequencing
FOSTER CITY, Calif. – September 4, 2007 – Applied Biosystems (NYSE:ABI), an Applera Corporation business, today announced an initiative to support life scientists and independent software vendors (ISVs) in the development and potential commercialization of bioinformatics applications for next-generation DNA sequencing platforms. As part of this initiative, the company is expanding its Software Development Community to include sample data sets, data file formats and data conversion tools for its SOLiD™ System, one of the life-science industry’s most advanced ultra-high-throughput, next-generation sequencing platforms. Applied Biosystems is the first manufacturer of next-generation instrument systems to make these tools available to the bioinformatics community. It is doing so to directly address the industry-wide challenges associated with analyzing and managing the vast amounts of research data generated by this ultra-high-throughput technology.
Applied Biosystems expects this initiative to drive innovation and speed the development of new tools that will enable researchers to find more answers faster and more cost effectively, thereby helping life scientists to realize the full potential of next-generation sequencing. The promise of next-generation sequencing technology is to broaden the applications of genomic information in medical research and health care, reduce the cost of DNA sequencing without sacrificing quality, and enable discoveries that may revolutionize the practice of medicine.
Recently, more than 40 researchers from 30 leading academic and commercial institutions convened at Applied Biosystems’ headquarters in Foster City, Calif. to provide input and share best practices with each other on their respective next-generation sequencing software development initiatives. Among the participants were scientists from the Christian-Albrechts-University in Kiel, Germany, who expressed interest in developing software applications to better understand genetic variations that may correlate with chronic inflammatory diseases, including Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, atopic dermatitis, and sarcoidosis.
“The promise that next-generation, genetic-analysis technologies will generate better data, faster, and at a lower cost will only be realized when there are sufficient software applications that allow researchers to analyze this data,” said Michael Wittig, a bioinformatician at the Institute for Clinical Molecular Biology in Kiel. “Applied Biosystems’ willingness to provide access to tools and reference data sets is helping us to more rapidly develop the software applications that are necessary to advance our work in understanding genetic variation.”
The Joint Genome Institute (JGI) is an Applied Biosystems early-access collaborator that provides contract sequencing services and develops computational and bioinformatic tools for data management and mining. JGI serves approximately 500 scientists working on a broad range of sequencing projects and provides many of the software applications that they rely on to analyze the data JGI generates on their behalf.
“We are not only interested in the quality of the data each platform generates; but equally as important is how willing each vendor is to collaborate with the research community to provide the necessary tools and resources for developing the required software applications,” said Dr. Darren Platt, Ph.D., head of informatics at JGI. “Applied Biosystems has been very forthcoming in sharing information about the SOLiD system platform. We anticipate that this level of assistance will enable us to rapidly develop the software applications our laboratories need to accelerate next-generation research projects.”
As part of this program, Applied Biosystems has dedicated resources to create and support a community of bioinformatics experts that it expects will advance application development in the many research areas supported by the SOLiD system platform. These include but are not limited to whole genome sequencing; chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP); microbial sequencing; gene expression; microRNA discovery; digital karyotyping; epigenetic profiling; and detection of rare genetic variants among others. Applications such as these have been identified by prospective customers as being important to driving the early adoption of next-generation sequencing.
“Collaboration with our early-access customers and bioinformatics experts has given us ample opportunity to clearly define what is required to help them to successfully develop the software applications that will ensure their success in conducting next-generation sequencing projects,” said Kimberlee S. Caple, vice president and general manager for Applied Biosystems’ next-generation sequencing business unit. “Application-specific software is crucial in building the bridge from the quality data generated by the SOLiD System to new insights that will advance biomedical research by broadening the use of genomic information.”
The SOLiD System, based on sequencing by oligonucleotide ligation and detection, is Applied Biosystems’ next-generation system for ultra high-throughput DNA analysis. Unlike polymerase sequencing approaches, the SOLiD System utilizes a proprietary technology called stepwise ligation, which generates high quality data for applications such as whole genome sequencing, medical sequencing, genotyping, gene expression and small RNA discovery. Currently in use by early-access customers, the SOLiD System will be commercially available beginning in October.
Applied Biosystems is a global leader in the development and commercialization of instrument-based systems, consumables, software, and services for the life-science market and is the recognized market leader in the commercialization of DNA sequencing platforms. For more information about the SOLiD System or the Software Development Community please visit http://solid.appliedbiosystems.com or http://www.appliedbiosystems.com/support/software_community/
About Applera Corporation and Applied Biosystems
Applera Corporation consists of two operating groups. The Applied Biosystems Group serves the life science industry and research community by developing and marketing instrument-based systems, consumables, software, and services. Customers use these tools to analyze nucleic acids (DNA and RNA), small molecules, and proteins to make scientific discoveries and develop new pharmaceuticals. Applied Biosystems’ products also serve the needs of some markets outside of life science research, which we refer to as “applied markets,” such as the fields of: human identity testing (forensic and paternity testing); biosecurity, which refers to products needed in response to the threat of biological terrorism and other malicious, accidental, and natural biological dangers; and quality and safety testing, for example in food and the environment. Applied Biosystems is headquartered in Foster City, CA, and reported sales of approximately $2.1 billion during fiscal 2007. The Celera Group is primarily a molecular diagnostics business that is using proprietary genomics and proteomics discovery platforms to identify and validate novel diagnostic markers, and is developing diagnostic products based on these markers as well as other known markers. Celera maintains a strategic alliance with Abbott for the development and commercialization of molecular, or nucleic acid-based, diagnostic products, and it is also developing new diagnostic products outside of this alliance. Through its genomics and proteomics research efforts, Celera is also discovering and validating therapeutic targets, and it is seeking strategic partnerships to develop therapeutic products based on these discovered targets. Information about Applera Corporation, including reports and other information filed by the company with the Securities and Exchange Commission, is available at http://www.applera.com, or by telephoning 800.762.6923. Information about Applied Biosystems is available at
http://www.appliedbiosystems.com.
