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US-based Illumina, a global leader in DNA sequencing and array-based technologies, and the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST), an international graduate university in Okinawa, Japan, have announced a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to accelerate genomics innovation in alignment with the One World, One Health framework, which recognises the interconnectedness of human, animal, and environmental health.
This collaboration will combine Illumina's Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) technologies and OIST's expertise in multidisplinary science from engineering, physics to biology, ecology and marine sciences. Together, the aim is to foster knowledge sharing, testing and evaluating cutting-edge technologies, facilitate technology disclosures, promote talent development, and collaboration on innovation events.
Through this partnership, Illumina and OIST aspire to become a knowledge hub that amplifies the potential of industry-academia collaboration and accelerates the advancement of genomic science in Japan.
One aim of the MoU is to accelerate access to genomics in Japan by becoming an epicentre of knowledge that draws on the capabilities of industry, academia, and the public sector.
An area of collaboration that is showing initial promise is in marine conservation using metagenomics, where environmental DNA (eDNA) is extracted from the ocean and sequenced to identify marine species.
