BioNano Genomics and the New York Genome Center (NYGC) announced today a strategic partnership between the two institutions that includes the purchase of an Irys™ System by NYGC.
"The New York Genome Center is creating one of the largest and most ambitious genomics and bioinformatics facilities in North America, and we are thrilled to have them bring our platform in-house," said Todd Dickinson, Ph.D., vice president, Global Commercial Operations. "For BioNano, demonstrating the ability to deliver a commercial-ready technology that can address the long-range information needs of a premier genome center like NYGC marks an important milestone. With their Irys System, the NYGC will now provide their direct research community with the most advanced long-read commercial technology to accelerate translational research and ultimately improve human health, consistent with the mission of this new center."
NYGC was founded in 2010 to speed biomedical research and improve clinical care through a collaborative approach to genomic data and resources. In 2012, NYGC launched its Integrated Genomic Solutions, custom-built services incorporating high-throughput sequencing, bioinformatics analysis, and data management. Later this year, the independent non-profit will open its state-of-the-art facility and permanent headquarters in lower Manhattan. The facility will provide a collective workspace available to researchers to access the most advanced technologies and sequencing and bioinformatics leadership.
"Innovation and cutting-edge technologies are key to our vision of providing high quality genomics sequencing and bioinformatics services to researchers in New York City and beyond," said Robert B. Darnell, M.D., Ph.D., president and scientific director of NYGC. "Genomics researchers and clinicians need accurate, comprehensive detection of genomic structural variation and to finish genome assemblies to accurately detect and diagnose diseases and improve treatments for patients around the world."
Genomic sequencing technologies are often described as short-, medium-, or long-read. Short- and medium-read technologies rely on inferring information from short fragments of DNA. Long-read technologies, like the Irys System, preserve the native genomic structure, which provides deeper insights into genome variations. The ability to directly visualize the genome with high-throughput single molecule imaging enables the comprehensive detection of structural variation, significantly improved genome assemblies, and ultimately haplotype phasing.
"At NYGC, we regularly assess new technologies that have significant applications for genomics and bioinformatics and evaluate these systems based on innovation, need, and commercial readiness," said Kevin V. Shianna, Ph.D., Deputy Scientific Director, Sequencing. "The long-range genomic information from BioNano's Irys System is highly complementary to our existing sequencing technologies and allows us to achieve a significantly more complete view of the genome and its variation."
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