Solexa appoints Clive G
Brown as Head of Bioinformatics
4
July 2003, Little Chesterford, UK…Solexa,
the UK-based company developing a system that will allow rapid sequencing
of individual genomes, has announced the appointment of Clive G Brown as
Head of Bioinformatics.
Mr
Brown was formerly a Bioinformatics Consultant working at Oxford
GlycoSciences (OGS) where he helped initiate, design and implement the
Protein Atlas of the Human Genome™. He also consulted for a number of
other biotech companies designing commercial data products. Prior to this
he was at the Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics in Oxford working
on genotyping database systems. He went to Oxford from GlaxoWellcome (UK)
where he was a team leader for a bioinformatics group working on RNA
microarray and other high throughput informatics systems focused on target
and drug discovery. Prior to this he worked at the Sanger Institute on
production informatics to support the sequencing of the Human Genome and
other organisms.
Commenting
on his appointment, Mr Brown said, “Solexa is developing a platform that
will radically improve the quality and quantity of information about
genetic variation available in the areas of genetics and genomics ranging
from gene discovery through to clinical applications. The quantity of raw
sequence data generated by each Solexa system will be close to that of the
entire Human Genome Project. Robust and scalable systems, databases and
algorithms are required to collect, manage and analyse these data.
Bioinformatics capability will be vital to the success of the system and I
am delighted to be joining the Company at this exciting time.”
Nick
McCooke, Solexa’s CEO, welcomed Mr Brown to the Company, saying,
“Clive’s appointment to the position of Head of Bioinformatics will
help us expand our capabilities in this critical area, bringing us another
step closer to the completion of our genome sequencing system prototype.
By rapidly sequencing whole genomes, the Solexa system will allow rapid
measurement of genetic variation, thus enabling new methods of applying
knowledge of individual variation to disease association, pharmacogenomics
and, ultimately, the development of new molecular diagnostics and tailored
drugs.”
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ends –
Notes
to editors
1.
Solexa
www.solexa.co.uk
Solexa
has developed a system with a capability of massively parallel sequencing
of short fragments of genomic DNA. The Company will have completed a
system prototype by the end of 2003. Solexa’s technology will overcome
the cost and throughput bottlenecks in the production and application of
individual genetic variation data that are holding back many of the
benefits to medicine that can flow from the genome revolution. Its system
will offer a potential five order of magnitude efficiency improvement,
well beyond the range possible from existing technologies, thus paving the
way to the “$1000 genome”.
The
Company’s technical approach combines patented advances in synthetic
chemistry, surface chemistry, molecular biology, enzymology, array
technology and optics. Its Single Molecule Arrays™ have the equivalent
of hundreds of millions of sequencing lanes and deliver base-by-base
sequencing on a chip without the need for amplification of the DNA sample.
An animation of this technology is available on the Company’s website.
In
the shorter term, the Solexa genome sequencing system will improve and
accelerate new methods of applying knowledge of individual variation to
disease association, pharmacogenomics, cancer diagnosis and drug
development. Ultimately the system will enable personalised medicine
through the development of gene diagnostics and tailored drugs.
Founded
in 1998 and led by Nick McCooke, CEO, and a high quality board and
management team, Solexa’s talented and multidisciplinary scientists are
focused on accelerating prototype development from its customized 14,000
sq ft facilities to the south of Cambridge, UK. Solexa has raised over £15
million (€22 million; $23 million) in venture capital investment that
has enabled rapid progress in the development of its technologies.
Investors include Abingworth Management, Schroder Ventures Life Sciences,
Oxford Bioscience Partners and Amadeus Capital Partners.
2.
Media pack and photographs
Electronic
photographs of Solexa's technology and a full media pack with diagrams is
available on request from Northbank Communications – please contact
Caroline Stupnicka on +44 (0)20 7886 8154, c.stupnicka@northbankcommunications.com.
