Academia-Industry Collaboration: An Integral Element for Building “Omic” Resources
- David E. Hill1,10,
- Michael A. Brasch2,
- Anthony A. del Campo3,
- Lynn Doucette-Stamm4,
- James I. Garrels5,
- Judith Glaven6,
- James L. Hartley7,
- James R. Hudson, Jr.8,
- Troy Moore9, and
- Marc Vidal1,10
- 1 Center for Cancer Systems Biology and Department of Cancer Biology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA
- 2 Atto Bioscience, Rockville, Maryland 20850, USA
- 3 Office of Research and Technology Ventures, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA
- 4 Agencourt Biosciences Corporation, Beverly, Massachusetts 01915, USA
- 5 Garbrook Associates, Beverly, Massachusetts 01915, USA
- 6 Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA
- 7 SAIC/NCI, Frederick, Maryland 21702, USA
- 8 CityScapes, Huntsville, Alabama 35801, USA
- 9 Open Biosystems, Huntsville, Alabama 35806, USA
This extract was created in the absence of an abstract.
The availability of ∼200 nearly completed genome sequences and >900 additional sequencing projects underway is changing the very fabric of biological research endeavors. With access to enormous amounts of sequencing data and rapidly expanding cloned gene collections, scientists have the opportunity to pursue research projects at any scale, from highly focused, one-gene-at-a-time studies to broader, more global genome and proteome-wide approaches. Although the former efforts are well within the standard purview of traditional research laboratories, global approaches necessitate a more complex collaborative environment involving multidisciplinary teams from academia, government, and industry. Such “large-scale science,” most recently demonstrated by the Human Genome Project, also demands open access to data and resources, regardless of where the primary data are generated, and a commitment to provide as complete a resource as is feasible. This special issue focuses on creating, improving, and using cloned “ORFeomes” and exemplifies successful partnerships between academia and industry. In this perspective we argue that long-term academia-industry collaborative relationships provide optimal solutions to the specific problems of discovery science.
From Blueprints to Finished Goods
The human genome sequence and that of various model organisms provide a necessary framework for a transition from molecular biology to systems biology. Although the human genome sequence is sometimes referred to as the “parts-list,” it is crucial to realize that genome sequence annotations, as they are available today, provide rough drafts of blueprints for the parts. The challenge to establish the precise number of parts, namely, the encoded proteins and RNAs, their actual structure, and their respective interactions, requires a dedicated effort to convert the blueprints into an accessible warehouse of available, well-characterized manufactured parts.
This issue of Genome Research highlights recent developments in the generation of various genome-wide resource collections that are expected to contribute to a more integrated understanding of biological processes (Ideker et al. 2001; …
