Collaborative Research on Predicting Prostate Cancer Risks
BGI and Maxwell Plus have executed a collaborative research project “A model to predict risk of developing advanced or metastatic prostate cancer using genetic makeup and family history of cancers” in September. Prostate cancer is the second most common type of cancer among males in Western countries, with an estimated 165,000 new cases and 29,500 cancer deaths in 2018 alone. The objective of the project is to understand the genetic makeup of prostate cancer patients and understand how significant the association is between prevalence of prostate, breast, ovarian and colorectal cancers in the families of patients. The risk of the genetic makeup and family history will be combined into a risk model for predicting advanced or metastatic prostate cancer. All samples will be sequenced on the cutting-edge BGI genetic sequencer, MGISEQ-2000, in the BGI Australia laboratory.
About Maxwell Plus
Founded in 2016, Maxwell Plus is a growing Brisbane based medical technology startup rethinking the way we detect and diagnose disease. By combining machine learning with medical imaging the team are working to make cancer diagnosis faster, more affordable and more accurate.
Research Collaboration on Personalised Healthcare
A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between BGI and Xing Technologies is signed on 22 Aug 2018 supporting collaborative research and product innovation in the following areas:
- DNB technology: optimise current DNA nanoball technology to improve sequencing data quality and throughput resulting in reduced sequencing costs;
- Point-of-care product: based on XING’s patented “Laboratory in a Drop” technology, undertake joint research into, and manufacturing of, a transformative diagnostic product developed by XING to offer the world, including millions of Australians, an accurate, rapid and inexpensive point-of-care disease screening, diagnosis & monitoring kit, which will revolutionise current practice. The applications even extend to human health as well as animals and plant material, such as agriculture, aquaculture, veterinary science
Xing Technologies, the bio-nanotechnology innovator, is a UQ spin-off enterprise specialising in world-leading disease diagnosis and monitoring technologies, including cancer. Its proprietary nano-technologies are transforming the future practice of medicine and healthcare.
MGI and Decode Science Form Distribution Partnership
MGI is pleased to announce the appointment of Decode Science as the distributor for the MGI range of next generation sequencers and related products in Australia and New Zealand regions. This partnership levers the strengths of both organisations to provide strong local support for customers. In true partnership the MGI Australia team and Decode Science will jointly provide after sales applications and service support to new and existing units in the market. The key contact details for Decode Science are listed below:
Decode Science Pty Ltd
ABN: 24 615 709 245
Add.: Eastern Innovation Centre, 5a Hartnett Place, Mulgrave 3170
Email: sales@decodescience.com.au
Phone: 1800 724 3625
Contact: Joshua Warburton
About Decode Science
Decode Science is a privately owned Australian organisation specialising in the Life Science market. Founded in 2016 Decode Science has rapidly grown to provide national coverage of Australia and New Zealand. Decode Science has a vision to enable discovery amongst the scientific community by providing the best products from around the globe aligned with best-in-class local support.
About MGI
MGI Tech Co. Ltd. ("MGI" hereinafter), a subsidiary of BGI - the largest genomics organisation in the world, is specialised in R&D and manufacturing of proprietary instrumentation, medical devices, ancillary consumables and biological reagents e.g. genetic sequencers, mass spectrometers, medical imaging systems, and comprehensive solutions for scientifi research and applications in life sciences. MGI owns more than 100 patents. Headquartered in China, MGI has established local technical support teams in Australia, Europe, Americas, and South-east Asia. With the vision to "enable effective and affordable healthcare solutions for all", MGI has more than 800 employees worldwide and strives to be a leading innovator in life science technologies.
BGI Australia celebrated 2nd anniversary
BGI Australia celebrated its second anniversary on 22nd August 2018. A humble ceremony was held in QIMR Auditorium with invited collaborators, partners, and friends. The ceremony was also attended by distinguished government dignitaries Mr. Jie Xu, Consul General of Chinese Consulate Brisbane, and Dr. Julie Playford, Acting Executive Director of Science Development, Department of Environment and Science, Queensland Government. Since its humble beginning in 2016, BGI Australia has been actively developing scientific research collaborations with reputable Australian universities and research institutes in a range of arenas e.g. "imaging+genomics" cancer diagnosis, infectious disease control and prevention, marine biology and biodiversity. We thank all the guests for coming to share our happy day with us and we look forward to a successful future with you in it.
Genomics and AI to Predict Cancer Treatment
Integrating genomics and artificial intelligence to predict treatment responses in cancer patients is going to become a reality. A major collaborative research project “Artificial Intelligence and Genomics to Predict Cancer Treatment” has been awarded a $2.6 million CRC-P Grant (Cooperative Research Centre Projects) by Australian Government. The official announcement is made today by Assistant Minster for Science, Jobs and Innovation, Zed Seselja, and Federal Member for Brisbane, Trevor Evans on 25 Jul 2018.
BGI is the Next-Gen Sequencing partner of the Project, in collaboration with other world leading partners including Max Kelsen the leading partner specialised in artificial intelligence technology, QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute as the research partner, Queensland Health Metro North Hospital and Health Service as the clinical partner, and genomiQa as the bioinformatic analysis partner.
The Project will receive $2.6 million under the fifth round of the CRC-P Program, and has attracted $6.4 million of cash and in-kind contributions from industry partners. "This project will firmly establish the role of artificial intelligence and whole genome analysis in the future of precision medicine" said Nicholas Therkelsen-Terry CEO of Max Kelsen.
Colin Albert, CEO of genomiQa, a spin-out company of QIMR Berghofer Institute of Medical Research said the project would help to unlock the value of whole genome data for patients and clinicians. “This project will firmly establish the role of whole genome analysis and artificial intelligence to help predict the response of immunotherapy for the treatment of cancer.”
Mr Albert said genomiQa’s high-quality genomic pipeline was developed by founders Dr Nic Waddell and Dr. John Pearson.
Dr. Bicheng Yang, Director of BGI Australia said, “BGI is proud to provide sequencing support for this $9.1 million project, which will help establish whole genome sequencing as part of routine clinical practice, as BGI’s objective is to make sequencing more affordable and accessible to benefit the general public”. More in the News
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