A modern person's great expectation of convergence technology is on the subject of being "forever" young (living well and beautiful at any age). With the development of information technology and biotechnology, should we really accept the fact of getting old and ill - hairs falling out, organs running down, and knees wearing out Imagine a brand new ultra definition television outshining its viewer. This is where the decade-spanning research of genome or bio-informatics is proving its real worth. IBM, Google, Samsung SDS, and recent scientists' investments and discoveries prove that there is a thirst of the bio-informatics industries around the world which can secure two words for people today and future: Forever Young.
Google's Strategic Investment to Biotechnology Start-up
In 2007, Google has invested 3.6 millions dollars in 23andMe, a privately held personal genomics and biotechnology company based in California. With a round of funding of Google, New Enterprise Associates, Mohr Davidow Ventures, and Genentech, 23andMe has been developing new technology and methods that will enable its consumers to understand their own genetic information at an affordable cost.
The cost to sequence the human genome in 2009 was from $5,000 to $50,000. Today at www.23andme.com, anyone can explore their genomes by purchasing $499 kit (Ancestry Edition + Health Edition). After filling in the user's family tree, all it takes is a little bit of spit into the tube before sending it to the lab. Within 8 weeks, DNA is fully analyzed, and ready to be explored online by the sender. For Google which has been taking a quite a while to organize the world's information, holding a minority stake in 23andMe is quite significant because 23andMe organizes people's genetic information. Together, they can complete each other's mission.
I.B.M. Pulls Infrastructure to Join the Race
On October 6, 2009, John Markoff of the New York Times revealed I.B.M.'s ultimate goal to make a personal genome cheaper than a ticket to a Broadway. I.B.M. envisions to bring the cost of gene sequencing to as low as $100. By combining the expertise of I.B.M's infrastructure- semiconductor manufacturing, computing, and material science- I.B.M. planed to specifically design supercomputers for modeling an integrated sequencing machine. Why I.B.M. believes in affordable cost of genome sequencing for its users Since the whole point of sequencing genome is to bring an era of personalized medicine, I.B.M. seeks to build a machine that would have the capacity to sequence an individual genome of up to three billion bases, or nucleotides, in several hours. Development of I.B.M. "DNA transistor" is in its continuous progress to complete a system that enables the sequence of vast quantities of DNA at once.
The Latest Discovery from Canada
Then on May 7, researchers of the University of Toronto was on the headline of the Vancouver Sun for cracking hidden splicing code in genes. This signifies the possibility of a small number genes generating a large number of genetic messages. According to Allison Cross' interview with Brendan Frey, his team has produced a web tool for researchers that shows how different genes are being spliced. "If you go in there and peer at that DNA, you can compare it to mutations that have been observed by medical doctors," he said. Doctors sometimes sequence the genomes of their patients to see why they have a disease. If they find mutations, they can see if they match up with the code words discovered by Frey's team. "And you can see if those mutations match up with these code words we've discovered . . . then, there's an implication that that mutation is interfering with the production of these genetic messages," he said. "So now there's an explanation for why the disease might occur."
Samsung SDS Buckles with Companions to Set Drive
Samsung SDS made a technical cooperation with Cloudera, an American company, to secure the expertise of Hadoop (innovative platform for consolidating, combining and understanding mass data). Then Samsung made further cooperation with Korean Bioinformation Center and Lee Kil-yeo Cancer & Diabetes Research Center. On March 24, Samsung SDS takes both the global and home network to the next step by signing MOU with Life Technologies and Samsung Medical Center. Gregory T. Lucier, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Life Technologies said, "Samsung Medical Center's medical expertise and SDS' bio-informatics experience will perfectly accord with our highly accurate next generation sequencing technology. Samsung SDS is currently pilot testing with two families totaling 8 people to sequence and analyze their genetic information. Samsung SDS plans to continue developing technology in full global collaboration. It also envisions to provide affordable gene sequencing solution within three years.
Kim In, CEO of Samsung SDS said, "By working closely together with Medical, IT, and BT leaders worldwide, we believe that our collaboration will contribute greatly to the better understanding of the patient's genetic information, which will find cure and conclude personalized medicine."
Prefect Recipe for Treatment
"I'd wait until the cost of genome sequencing hits around $100. I will be okay as long as I collect all my genetic information by the time I am forty, cause that is when I would actually start having problems here and there," Kate (25) from Texas commented on her blog. Would an upcoming era of personalized medicine be an extension of living in Neverland or the high-class silver town Further discoveries and developments carries on with future patients and customers' full of curiosity, expectation, and imagination.
