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FORINFRA-Nasj.sats. forskn.infrastrukt

National consortium for sequencing and personalized medicine

Alternative title: Nasjonalt konsortium for sekvensering og persontilpasset medisin

Awarded: NOK 77.1 mill.

The Norwegian Consortium for Sequencing and Personalized Medicine (NorSeq) is a national research infrastructure with partners from Oslo University Hospital, University of Oslo, Haukeland University Hospital, University of Bergen, The Norwegian University of Science and Technology and St. Olavs Hospital. NorSeq has, through funding from Research Council Norway and the host intstitutions, acquired state of the art equipment for high throughput DNA Sequencing allowing low cost DNA sequencing of human whole genomes and exomes as well as other sequencing applications. NorSeq provides services and perform DNA Sequencing for researchers from all over Norway and thereby secures the Norwegian research community access to a technology of increasing importance for medicine and life sciences. High throughput DNA sequencing is a transformative technology, rapidly changing life science research and medical research through its unique ability to decipher "the recipes of life" for all living organisms. Within medicine, a major focus area for NorSeq has been the ability to sequence human whole genomes and exomes to facilitate the development of personalized medicine. This allows medical treatments to be tailored towards the individual patients' unique molecular characteristics and thereby securing a more specific and efficient treatment less prone to side effects. NorSeq has through educational courses, health care innovation and national standardization efforts been an important facilitator for the implementation of personalized medicine into mainstream healthcare in Norway. In 2021 and 2022 NorSeq has been the major provider of covid19 sequencing in Norway sequencing close to 50.000 viral samples and been important part of the pandemic surveillance in Norway.

The aim of The National Consortium for Sequencing and Personalized Medicine (NCS-PM) is to establish cost-efficient whole human genome sequencing in Norway in order to facilitate the development and implementation of personalized medicine in Norway. Personalized medicine will have vast effects for precision, efficacy and economy of healthcare within inherited disorders, cancer and chronic and infectious diseases and will transform the Norwegian health care system. Norway, with its large biobanks, high quality health registries and transparent and public health care system is well positioned to take a leading role. However, this requires access to the most efficient DNA sequencing technology. Here we seek funding for a technology platform that will reduce cost with 70% compared to presently available technology in Norway. The extreme throughput makes whole genome sequencing of large cohorts in research and healthcare possible. The consortium consists of all major sequencing core facilities in Norway, including The Norwegian Sequencing Centre, which is on the national roadmap and will serve as the hub, and regional core facilities for sequencing in Oslo, Trondheim and Bergen collectively known as the Norwegian Genomics Consortium (NGC) serving as spokes. Thus, for the first time we are bringing together the considerable expertise and know-how in high throughput sequencing and medicine across Norway in a single unified effort. Both the hub and spokes have extensive track records as core facilities for research. The partners in Oslo, Bergen and Trondheim are deeply embedded in the health care system, allowing efficient translation of research findings into a clinical setting. Hence, NCS-PM is ideally suited to be a key national instrument for health care innovation and the implementation of personalized medicine. NCS-PM and its partners have a longstanding collaboration with other relevant national infrastructures like Biobank Norway, Elixir and Norstore.

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FORINFRA-Nasj.sats. forskn.infrastrukt

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