Oxford Nanopore Technologies is happy to appreciate Mark Akeson of the University of California in Santa Cruz and his partners for receiving a three-year grant worth $3.6 million from the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI).
The Chief Executive Officer at Oxford Nanopore, Gordon Sanghera stated that the NHGRI $1,000 genome program acknowledges the role played by innovative technology to advance genomics and the company is proud to partner with Akeson in the transformation of this special science into an outstanding technology.
Akeson has developed techniques to monitor the transfer of single stranded DNA (ssDNA) via protein nanopores. This is an important aspect of DNA ‘strand sequencing’ where DNA bases are found in series as ssDNA is ratcheted via a nanopore.
In December 2010, a research team led by Akeson and Kate Lieberman had reported its findings in the Journal of the American Chemical Society (JACS). The team demonstrated constant and monitored transfer of a ssDNA polymer by a DNA polymerase enzyme via a protein nanopore under conditions the same as that of a high output electronics-based DNA sequencing technology.
Oxford Nanopore in partnership with Akeson is developing DNA strand sequencing technologies for the GridION platform of the company. This collaboration includes research assistance at Akeson’s UCSC laboratories and a sequence of exclusive license deals for associated inventions. The GridION system is engineered to offer an expandable and flexible system for several nanopore sensing applications such as strand sequencing as well as the analysis of other molecules like proteins.
Source: http://www.nanoporetech.com