One reason I have been lame in the blogging department is that I have been working on the LavaAmp™ project. After SciFoo camp last year, I was asked by Joseph Jackson and Guido Nuñez-Mujica if I could help them licences this device from Texas A&M.
Guido is from Venezuela and is most interested in infectious disease testng in 3rd world, remote applications. This is a talk Guido gave at Google shortly before SciFoo camp:
After nearly a year of negotiating with the TAMU tech transfer office (some day I’ll blog about University Tech Transfer offices stifling Innovation and commercialization) in the past 6 weeks we recruited Rob Carlson and Rik Wehbring from Biodesic and a the engineering prototype is built.
“The LavaAmp is based on the convective PCR thermocycler demonstrated by Agrawal et al, which has been licensed from Texas A&M University to Gahaga. Under contract from Gahaga, Biodesic reduced the material costs and power consumption of the device. We started by switching from the aluminum block heaters in the original device (expensive) to thin film heaters printed on plastic. A photo of the engineering prototype is below (inset shows a cell phone for scale). PCR reagents, as in the original demonstration, are contained in a PFTE loop slid over the heater core. Only one loop is shown for demonstration purposes, though clearly the capacity is much larger.”
So we’re off and running. Joseph is out at BilPil in San Diego this weekend with the device and hoping to get a little mention in at iGEM Jamboree in Boston, although it’s hard to be in two places at once.
A bit more from Synthesis: ”The existing prototype has three independently controllable heating zones that can reach 100C. The device can be powered either by a USB connection or an AC adapter (or batteries, if desired). The USB connection is primarily used for power, but is also used to program the temperature setpoints for each zone. The design is intended to accommodate additional measurement capability such as real-time fluorescence monitoring.
We searched hard for the right materials to form the heaters and thin film conductive inks are a definite win. They heat very quickly and have almost zero thermal mass. The prototype, for example, uses approximately 2W whereas the battery-operated device in the original publication used around 6W.
What we have produced is an engineering prototype to demonstrate materials and controls — the form factor will certainly be different in production. It may look something like a soda can, though I think we could probably fit the whole thing inside a 100ml centrifuge tube.”
I need to put together the press release and finish plans for BioBeers on Friday, put more marketing material in our Business Plan and write up a new proposal for amniotic tissue skin grafts this morning. Gaining momentum…..
Just in case you didn’t read the FNP on Sunday, there was a feature article on BioBeers on Friday. Jason called it “Scientists Having Fun”. Me thinks I’ll just post a copy of the whole article.
Via Frederick News-Post
Soliciting sponsors for this event. Please RSVP via the Linked in Group if interested: http://events.linkedin.com/BioBeers-East-November-09/pub/149307
I didn’t want to scoop this story too early, but FredCoBio, and BioBeers specifically, will be featured on Jason Balog’s Biotech blog in the News-Post tomorrow. Stay tuned for the post.
I wanted to post some neat slides being shown in the Lunchroom at MedImmune for the Open House they had last weekend, but alas the slides are not for public consumption.
A couple interesting facts about the new MedImmune Frederick Manufacturing Facility: over 355,000 sq ft under roof. It is the tallest building in Frederick at 6 stories. The facility will make Synagis and is being built with the capacity to make other products, potentially FluMist.
Ok, we need to schedule the next BioBeers. I am going to try something different and Poll the faithful readers to determine the best day of the week for the next one. Then I’ll see if Flying Dog will let us book that day of the week. Hard to believe we’re more than half way through October already.
It will be either the week of the 9th or the 16th. Tuesday the 17th is out since I am sitting on a panel in Lean in Biotech sponsored by the Maryland World Class Consortia. So here’s the poll:
You can vote for 2 different dates. I also need to ask who wants to sponsor this event. Thgere are opportunities for both Tipping fee (the beer at $5 per person) and food (which runs about $300). Please let me know if you’re interested in a sponsorship.
Geesh, I just realized that I haven’t posted in nearly a month. So much news to catch up on I don’t know where to start.
The reason I haven’t posted is that I have been working a contract at MedImmune, aiding in the commissioning of their new Frederick facility where they will be scaling up Synagis. It’s a wonderful product, a monoclonal antibody called palivizumab, which protects preemies and high risk babies from lung infections. It’s very busy here and I expect it to continue to be busy through the end of the year (at least that’s how long I think my contract will be running). I really don’t know how much of what I see here is considered “confidential” so I’ll keep quiet. Suffice to say, big bioreactors and 4-5 contractors for every MedImmune employee on site.
It’s kind of fun running into the other contractors all over town in different bars and restaurants. Especially now that MedImmune has already received $453 million in contracts since May, but Frederick doesn’t have much to do with making the H1N1 vaccine. A lot of the people here do travel to Philadelphia where that product is packaged, though.
Speaking of swine flu, I gave a talk tat the NIH last week on the Commercial uses of Stem Cells. My focus was on the “commerce” created specifically by Stem Cell research, staying away from the Therapeutic elements.
Check it out:
Enough shameless self promotion.
Frank from SAIC-Frederick sent me this press release, which I have not seen covered elsewhere:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Amplimmune Enters Into Broad Alliance with NCI
Collaboration Will Focus on
Potential New Therapies for Cancer and Autoimmune Disease
FREDERICK, Md., Oct. 13, 2009 — Amplimmune, Inc., has entered into a broad agreement with the National Cancer Institute (NCI) for further advancement of two Amplimmune product candidates into therapies for cancer and autoimmune disease.
Under the Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA), Amplimmune will collaborate on multiple projects with NCI and its contractor, SAIC-Frederick Inc., under the umbrella of the NCI’s Advanced Technology Partnerships Initiative (ATPI). The goal of ATPI is to accelerate the translation of cancer and AIDS research into clinical therapies, diagnostics, and treatments. NCI-Frederick’s prime contractor, SAIC-Frederick is facilitating these partnerships for NCI.
The collaborations will focus on furthering development of Amplimmune’s AMP-110 and AMP-224 therapeutic biologic candidates. AMP-224 blocks activation of the PD-1 receptor and inhibits immune evasion typically induced by tumors or infectious disease pathogens. AMP-110 is being developed as a biologic to treat autoimmune/inflammatory disease and has been demonstrated to attenuate key inflammatory pathways that contribute to a wide range of different autoimmune diseases.
“We are very pleased to establish this broad CRADA with the National Cancer Institute,” said Michael Richman, Amplimmune’s President and CEO. “We look forward to collaborating with investigators at NCI and feel that these collaborations will have a significant impact on accelerating development and advancing AMP-224 and AMP-110 into the clinic,” he added.
“We value the opportunity to collaborate with Amplimmune on development of their leading therapeutic biologic candidates to treat cancer and immune disorders. This partnership reflects the true potential of NCI’s ATPI—to accelerate leading innovations into clinical application in the fight against cancer, through strategic partnerships. We look forward to working closely with our colleagues at Amplimmune on our shared goals under the CRADA,” said David Hoekzema, SAIC-Frederick’s Vice President of Business Development.
About Amplimmune Inc.
Headquartered in Rockville, Md., Amplimmune is focused on developing novel biologics targeting key co-stimulatory/co-inhibitory molecules that rebalance the immune system and are intended for treating cancer, autoimmune disease, infectious disease, and transplantation. With its strong development focus, Amplimmune is rapidly advancing two lead molecules toward clinical development: one in the area of cancer and the other in the autoimmune disease setting. AMP-224 will be advancing into a phase 1 clinical trial for cancer in 2010. Working closely with its founders at Johns Hopkins University and other collaborators, Amplimmune is expanding its technology base in the area of immune co-stimulatory/co-inhibitory molecules and has assembled a large foundation of reagents, models, know-how, and intellectual property to further develop its product pipeline as well as to discover novel biomarkers, ligands, and receptors. For more information: www.amplimmune.com.
About SAIC-Frederick
SAIC-Frederick, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), a Fortune 500® company, is the operations and technical support contractor for the National Cancer Institute’s research and development center in Frederick, Md. This is a national laboratory dedicated to rapidly translating basic research into new technologies for diagnosing, treating, and preventing cancer and AIDS. SAIC-Frederick maintains a full suite of advanced technologies in areas such as nanotechnology, genomics and imaging; operates the federal government’s drug and vaccine manufacturing facilities; operates the high-performance Advanced Biomedical Computing Center; and supports more than 300 clinical trials for patients in the United States and around the world.
Information about the NCI’s Advanced Technology Partnerships Initiative can be found at ATPIhome.com
They’ve also been awarded (SAIC-Frederick that is) $300MM in ARRA funding (the Stimulus hits Frederick County) and have heard rumors through my contacts in SAIC_Fred purchasing that the money is going to be released soon, in the form of several new hires and loads of contracts. Stay tuned and I will try to give FredCoBio companies and inside edge.
And speaking about big money and Big SAIC-Frederick Projects, Matan recently announced they’ve secured $300MM in financing for the Riverside Park project:
Matan Companies Teams with Federal Capital Partners to Finance The National Cancer Institute At Riverside Research Park in Frederick Maryland
(September 30, 2009-Frederick, MD) The Matan Companies has teamed up with Federal Capital Partners (FCP) to complete the financing for the development of the National Cancer Institute’s 330,000 square foot Advanced Technology Research Facility (ATRF) at Riverside Research Park in Frederick Maryland. The state-of-the art 200 million dollar office and laboratory facility will commence construction immediately and is slated for delivery in mid 2011. As part of the larger 177 acre Riverside Research Park, the National Cancer Institute’s 62 acre campus will have expansion capacity for another 570,000 square feet, reserved for life-science and advanced technology partner organizations. “This site will be the center of an intensive new effort to bring together government, industry, academic, and nonprofit partners, working side-by-side, utilizing technological resources second to none, to more rapidly translate our latest genetic and molecular discoveries about cancer into effective new treatments that benefit patients,” said John E. Niederhuber, M.D., director of the National Cancer Institute. With SAIC-Frederick, Inc. as its prime contractor, the new facility will be the only Federally Funded Research and Development Center (FFRDC) in the country focused exclusively on biomedical research and development, and concerted technology and R&D partnership efforts toward reducing the burden of cancer.
Matan and FCP partnered to secure the 52 million dollar construction financing from Wells Fargo Bank and US Bank. “Today’s financing environment demands creative approaches to bring large, high profile projects like this to the market. The ATRF is one of the largest private biotech developments in the country to secure construction financing and it is a credit to everyone involved,” stated Mark Matan, Principal of the Matan Companies. Matan Companies will develop and manage the project.
“We are incredibly excited to have formed this partnership with the Matan Companies to bring this very important project to fruition,” said Esko Korhonen, Managing Partner of FCP. “The diligent work by our teams resulted in consummating a great financing package and we appreciated the opportunity to work with Wells Fargo, US Bank, Jones Lang LaSalle and Cassidy & Pinkard to get this deal completed.”
Cassidy and Pinkard helped to secure the equity and debt for this transaction and Jones Lang LaSalle represented the Tenant.
About Riverside Research Park
Riverside Research Park is the first biomedical research and development park of its kind in Frederick Maryland. The 177 acre site has all necessary infrastructure and utilities in place and is ready to build. Riverside delivered its first tenant in the Spring of 2008, a 54,000 sf facility for Charles River Labs. Riverside can accommodate up to 1.8 million square feet of lab, R &D, and office space. “Frederick has a vibrant biotech community servicing NIH, the National Cancer Institute and Fort Detrick, but until now there hasn’t been a destination for these companies to come together in a collaborative campus type environment in this market. Riverside Research Park provides just that and there has been a very high level of interest from companies looking to co-locate with the National Cancer Institute” said J.P. Matan, Director of Leasing for Matan Companies. Located within the city limits of Frederick and less than three miles from the main gates of Fort Detrick, Riverside is uniquely positioned to provide private sector companies, government agencies, and universities a secure and collaborative work environment. Abundant green space, water features, walk/jogging trails, courtyards, and chance meeting spaces will all add to the collaborative work environment and campus like feel of Riverside Research Park. For more information please visit: www.riversideresearchpark.com
About Federal Capital Partners
Founded in 1999 by partners Esko L. Korhonen and Lacy I. Rice, Federal Capital Partners (FCP) is a real estate investment and development company headquartered in Washington DC. Other partners include Alex Marshall and Tom Carr, former Chairman and CEO of CarrAmerica Realty Corp. who joined FCP as a partner in early 2007. Since its inception, FCP has acquired more than $1.2 billion of real estate assets consisting of multi-family, office, retail and industrial assets. In 2008 FCP raised a 240 million dollar co-mingled, private equity fund which it is currently investing in multiple product sectors in the Mid Atlantic region. FCP has established a strong reputation in the greater Washington DC metropolitan area real estate markets as an investor with a keen eye for indentifying unexploited markets and product sectors.
About Matan Companies
Headquartered in Frederick Maryland for over 30 years, Matan Companies is one of the regions premier commercial real estate and development firms. Founded on the principle of providing a comprehensive, full-service approach to all disciplines involved in commercial real estate, Matan has assembled an in-house professional staff with a proven track record in the disciplines of asset management, investment sales, debt placement, property management, leasing, development and construction. Matan’s knowledge of the local market and established history, including certainty of closing, expeditious due diligence and timely settlement dates, sets the company apart from the competition. This full service approach gives Matan the ability to control every phase of the real estate investment process. Matan’s primary geographic focus is Frederick, Maryland and the I-270 Corridor. Matan’s current portfolio consists of over 3.2 million square feet in 30 buildings with an additional 3 million square feet in the development pipeline.
About NCI-Frederick and SAIC-F
With SAIC-Frederick (SAIC-F) as its prime contractor, NCI-Frederick, is home to a cadre of researchers studying cancer and HIV/AIDS and is host to NCI’s Advanced Technology Program, which encompasses nanotechnology, high-performance computing, genomics, and biomedical imaging, among other areas. SAIC-F, a wholly owned subsidiary of Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), a Fortune 500® company (NYSE: SAI) – is the operations and technical support contractor for the National Cancer Institute’s research and development center in Frederick, Md. This is a national laboratory dedicated to rapidly translating basic research into new technologies for diagnosing, treating, and preventing cancer and AIDS. SAIC-Frederick maintains a full suite of advanced technologies in areas such as nanotechnology, genomics and imaging; operates the federal government’s only drug and vaccine manufacturing facilities; operates the high-performance Advanced Biomedical Computing Center; and supports more than 300 clinical trials for patients in the United States and around the world. “The NCI has identified an urgent need to convert basic research findings into effective cancer treatments that can be delivered to patients right away,” said Larry O. Arthur, Ph.D., president of SAIC-Frederick. “The consolidation of our operations into modern facilities will enable us to do just that, with the specific goal of shortening timelines, reducing costs, and increasing productivity—all of which will benefit cancer patients and people at risk for cancer.” More information about the NCI’s Advanced Technology Partnerships Initiative (ATPI) can be found at www.atpihome.com.
I actually could’ve broken this story before the press release, but I was busy and didn’t want to annoy one of my bestest BioBeers sponsors. But do check out the new Riverside Park web site. It’s awesome.
And speaking about more rumors, sadly, this one is NOT a rumor.Marilgen, in my home town of Ijamsville (just a mile or so north of the MoCo line), was acquired by Origene. My sources tell me that the few employees left at Marilgen have been offered positions at OriGene and will be relocated to Rockville (boo, hiss). Marilgen has been struggling for a year or so since one of their primary investors decided to pull their cash out. I have a lot of personal ties to Marligen, since most of the people there, in their hayday, were former LTI colleagues of mine and half of the Vialing depertment I used to run at LTI. Sherry Challberg hired me in 1988 and moved me to Maryland, for which I am eternally grateful.
This makes me think that it’s already time to schedule the next BioBeers. I think I’ll make a new post with a poll on which day of the week to have the next one. I’ve been trying to rotate it around because everyone has different schedules.
Apparently, I neglected to state our start time on Thursday is 4:30 PM,as I have had numerous inquiries.
Sponsors for this months event are Fluid Imaging Technologies and the Maryland Biotechnology Center. Here’s a preview of the FIT presentation:
FIT is coming down from Maine just for BioBeers. They’re technically not FredCoBio, but we’ll let them in since they’re paying for you to have free samples of Flying Dog Beer and a pint glass you can take home and because they’re doing work with some FredCoBio companies (or at least they hope to).
I am glad to have Chuck Montague from the Maryland Biotechnology Center bring us news and information about Maryland’s “One Stop Shop” for everything Biotech.
The response this month has been overwhelming and humbling. We’re certain to break the attendance record of 135 people.
If you haven’t RSVP’s, please shoot me an email or leave a comment here or on the LinkedIn group.
It’s been a busy couple of months and I apologize for not posting more frequently, but have to catch everyone up on a few things.
First, if you tired of reading this blog, you may want to check our Dr Robert House’s (one of the 25 CEO’s you need to know in 2009) blog over at DynPort vaccine: Drugs and Bugs An interesting quote in the most recent post talking about vaccine safety: ”Vaccines are literally the only class of pharmaceutical (using the broadest sense of the term) that is routinely administered to large numbers of healthy individuals”. I hope we can entice Dr House to attend BioBeers this month.
Oh, and speaking of BioBeers, I created a new LinkedIn group for those not young, hip and computer savvy enough to join the GoogleGroup. The next BioBeers is Thursday Sept 24th at the Flying Dog Brewery. Our gracious hosts at the Flying Dogs have again agreed to put up with us, even though they have the GonzoFest this weekend.
The response lately to the BioBeers event has been overwhelming! All kinds of offers to sponsor this and that. I wish I could get a few more people willing to present their research. For this event, we’re going to try having the presentations in the conference room adjoining the pub. This way, the people who would like to hear the presentations can enjoy them in a more intimate setting (probably fit 30-40 people in the conference room).
I should be able to update everyone on who is sponsoring and speaking, soon. In the mean time, this video from SciFoo 2009 was published by Nature over the weekend. One of the stars of the show is my friend and DIYbio colleague and evangelist, Mac Cowell. Brought back many memories for me from SciFoo ‘08
Follow the link above if you’re interested in helping NCI-Frederick develop novel, PD tests for point of care cancer diagnostics. The link is a download (Word Doc) of the entire RFI.
Here’s the gist:
The purpose of this Request for Information (RFI) is to provide potential subcontractors an overview of one strategic goal of the Division of Cancer Treatment and Diagnosis (DCTD) at NCI which is to promote the introduction of promising cancer therapeutics through the integration of appropriate pharmacodynamic (PD) tests into Phase 0 clinical trials with the focus on gathering evidence of targeted drug action that enables early Go/NoGo decisions. Information is requested from non-profit organizations, academics, clinical centers, and industry on the following topics:
1. Provide comment on the technologies and key cancer related pharmacodynamic targets for the next generation of PD assays that are to be developed using readily clinically adoptable state-of-the-art tools.
a. Utilization of multiplexed assay platforms that enable multiple PD readouts from small amounts of specimens coupled with robust annotation and data management to include: multi-channel microscopy, ELISAs, Laser Capture, PCR, etc. The goal is to maximize the amount of PD information that can be obtained from a single specimen. Combinatory markers have the greatest potential for providing valid and clinically relevant drug action and patient response information in genetically diverse populations.
b. The next generation of PD Assays must query multiple validated cancer specific analytes simultaneously to include the following categories:
1) Interrogate multiple targets within a molecular pathway, such as PTEN/Akt/PI3K/mTORC1 & 2.
2) Measure informative analytes that span across multiple core signaling pathways, of which the specific pathways driving the disease are often unique for different cancers.
3) Quantify multiple molecular events on the same target molecule, for example, activating and suppressing modifications of individual Akt isozymes or multiple phosphorylation sites on the MET receptor.
4) Identification of tumor stem cells using multiple known or novel stemness markers.
5) Filter target detection and quantitation to allow measurement in specific cellular compartments (e.g. plasma membrane and nucleus).
6) Develop assays for multiple new or known markers that are indicators of apoptotic commitment of tumor cells upon therapeutic treatment.
c. Establish an infrastructure to provide access to key reagents (antibodies, primers & probes, calibrators, references, etc), specimens (repositories, storage, processing, etc)), and accessory technologies (software, robotics, etc) that are essential for development of robust, sensitive, reproducible tests. This topic includes quality controlled production of critical reagents, regulatory (FDA/CLIA/CAP) knowledge and compliance, antibody diagnostic imaging, pattern recognition software, data analysis software that gives easily interpretable results, nanotechology for biopsies, and much more.
2. To provide institutions the opportunity to indicate their level of interest in responding to, and participating in, any future subcontracting opportunities in support of the pharmacodynamic assay initiative.
3. Provide institutions the opportunity to elaborate on their specific expertise in the core areas listed above.
Let me know if I can help or introduce you to the right people, if interested.
UPDATE 8/13 I should also point out that all of these “Business Opportunities” are available on SAIC-Frederick’s web site.
Here’s what’s there today:
A list of current business opportunities is provided below.
"Immaculate Confection" by Jason Freeney via Baltimore Examiner
There are a number of cool images on Jason’s web site MoistProuctions, and a neat slide show on Mary’s Baltimore Examiner piece as well as an interview. Although he’s in Manhattan now, you can find more of the former FredCo resident on his blog and his Facebook Page: Gummi Fetus.
All this talk almost makes me want to comment on the recent banter spewed forth by the RTLifer’s about one of our largest Biotech companies, but instead I’ll ask you to enjoy this YouTube video of a Gummi Bear (fetus)being destroyed for the sake of science (via joannelovesscience.com)
By the way, you trolls, if you’re so committed to your mission, why not take a pledge to never use a single product that was developed using Stem Cells? Same thing to those trolls destroying Pharma Execs (and at one point in time threatening me and my family) claiming to be Aminal Rights Activists: Don’t use any drugs or products that used Aminaml Testing? Why not? It would be the right things to do.
On another note, I saw an interesting article in the FNP yesterday that Emergent Biosolutions is pulling out of Frederick. This caught me by surprise because I didn’t even know they were in Frederick. According to their Press Room, they’ve owned these buildings since 2004, but never renovated or improved them. Building in Gaithersburg instead. OK, you win some and you lose some. I thought I heard somewhere that they won a contract fo9r H1N1 vaccine, but I may be mistaken.
I somehow missed Balog’s Biotech “Battle over biosimilars” last Sunday in the FNP. Personally, I think giving the “biosimilars” more protection, mimimizing the competition will have the opposite effect of putting new products on the shelf faster. It will stop competition dead in it’s tracks at the expense of the people needing these new therapies and ultimately, more people will die. The US Patent System is broken and archane and needs to be overhauled thrown out the window.
I would also be remiss if I didn’t mention a write up in FNP last week about MedImmune. The new facility is on schedule to open in 2011. I also learned, informally, that Synagis will be the first product produced there, but the plans are to move to more “flexible” manufacturing to permit other uses in the future.
Phot by Sam Yu via Frederick News Post
I will be making a guest appearance at the Frederick County Workforce Service’s Center at noon on Wednesday 8/12 for a “Lunch-n-Learn”. If you’re looking for work, then I might suggest you attend. You may not “learn” anything, but it’s all about the networking. I know I have been through the Center more than once in the past 9 years. I think it’s the least I can do to return the favor.
And speaking of networking, I am working on the next BioBeers with a target date of Thursday 8/27. Pencil it in. We can discuss fetal Gummi bear stem cell research…
Many moons ago, from about 1992-95 (Yikes, 16 years ago?), I spent most of my time in a “cold box” toiling over pouring, packing and eluting columns or slopping goo from one centrifuge bucket to the next or wheeling 40 liter tubs of one buffer or the other from the buffer kitchen to the cold box. Making enzymes, fancy proteins that catalyzed some modification of nucleic acids or other proteins.
One we made quite frequently was DNA Polymerase-I or it’s companion, the “Large Fragment of DNA Polymerase-I” known as the Klenow fragment or simply “Klenow”. Or maybe it was T7 DNA Polymerase or Taq Polymerase. The thing about the DNA polymerases we dreaded were not so much the cold box as most cross column (to determine where inthe column development the enzyme was eluted in deference to contaminating activities) as the QC tests. Most QC tests in those days involved the use of radioactive nucleotides. Radionuclides are relatively easy to produce, inexpensive and easy to detect. But the mother of all QC tests was the dreaded Dideoxy sequencing.
Things have changed a lot over the past 15 years in the world of sequencing. Back then, you might see 200-300 bands if you could pour a large enough gel. This is useful for small plasmids and viruses and such. Not really very useful for whole genome sequencing. But towards the end of the ’90’s a TIGER and Celera jumped into the sequencing game, called the Human Genome Project, pitting these private groups against the NIH.
To make a long story short (you can read more in the linked wikis), Craig Venter’s groups proved victorious and this generated a new Biotech bubble involved in Human Genomics.
Jump ahead to SciFoo ‘08. Some of the Rock Stars in attendance were of the Human Genomic craze, like 23andMe founders Linda Avey and Anne Wojcicki, and Harvard’s George Church, amongst others (including me). This was truely my first real indoctrination into the Personal Genotyping hysteria, as the announcement of 23andMe (funded, in part, by Google) was made just prior to SciFoo ‘08.
So when I read about the Personal Genome Project looking for volunteers, I justed straight on-line and registered a few months back. The project’s goal is to collect 100,000 human phenotypes. The first phase was the so-called “PGP-10” , most of whom are closely related to the project. I am hoping to get into the PGP-1000, which is the third phase, but I may just make it into the PGP-100, which is the next step in the process.
Check out this cool YouTube, which is part of a documentary being filmed by Marilyn Ness, a two-time Emmy Award-winning documentary producer:
So what should appear in my in box this morning at 10:07 AM?
Invitation
Thanks for your interest in joining with the PGP to advance personal genomic research! Your eligibility application has been reviewed. Based on the information you provided, you are eligible to continue to the next stage of enrollment!
Part of enrollment involves a Pledge. I will be asked to make a financial pledge and will recruit a community of supporters would be able to contribute over the next 6 months if I am enrolled in the project. Participants will be enrolled without regard to whether a financial pledge is made or the amount of the pledge, but contributions are encouraged and will be used to subsidize the costs of research and related activities.
I have been working on my enrollment forms this morning and through lunch. I have so many other cool FredCoBio stories I want to cover this week, so stay tuned.
And please, if you or your organization would like to Sponsor me through the process, do get in touch. I may take the Google approach and look for micropayments, say like $0.01 per base sequenced.
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FiberCell Systems
the column development the enzyme was eluted in deference to contaminating activities) as the QC tests. Most QC tests in those days involved the use of radioactive nucleotides. Radionuclides are relatively easy to produce, inexpensive and easy to detect. But the mother of all QC tests was the dreaded 