Our intention is to make Kerala a information centre for Genomics: Sam Santhosh
8 min readExpress News Service
KOCHI: Sam Santhosh, an entrepreneur with a 35-year observe document, is sometimes called the ‘Genome man of India’ after he incubated and launched a number of corporations within the life sciences area. Currently, Santhosh, because the biotech advisor for Kerala Development and Innovation Strategy Council (Ok-DISC), helps the Kerala authorities to arrange the Kerala Genome Data Centre. Edited excerpts from a telephonic interview
Can you clarify the fundamental thought behind the Kerala Genome Data Centre? What are its foremost aims?
The Kerala Genome Data Centre (KGDC) is a high-capacity information middle that may allow us to harness the facility of genomic information and the wealthy biodiversity of Kerala. This middle would function a knowledge hub for researchers, healthcare professionals, and public well being officers to entry and share genomic information. The information could be generated by sequencing samples from a spread ofsources, together with animals, vegetation, and environmental samples, and could be used to raised perceive illness transmission, establish new therapies and therapies, and monitor the emergence of recent illnesses. It could be a vital base for analysis establishments, hospitals and biotech corporations to supply personalised medication and develop new merchandise, and for bioinformatics and diagnostic startups and software program corporations to create value-added platforms and instruments utilizing AI and Machine Learning. This challenge is underneath Ok-DISC whose goal is to develop it as a Centre of Excellence in Genomics, in step with the Government’s purpose of remodeling Kerala’s financial system right into a information financial system.
Biotechnology is a high-end and area of interest space. Do you assume Kerala would have the capability to produce a excessive variety of human assets required on this space, particularly given the truth that Kerala is weak within the increased training sector?
Kerala has over 125 life sciences establishments which have been largely working in silos. We are hoping that KGDC will be the information spine that may deliver all these establishments collectively. Kerala additionally has numerous instructional establishments that may create the core human assets wanted. Kerala may also appeal to expertise from the remainder of India and the world and thus intention to turn into a information centre for Genomics.
You appear to counsel biotechnology is the subsequent massive sector that will set off a brand new wave, each by way of financial progress and job creation. Could you elaborate?
I imagine this century is the one for Biology. The revolution in Biology was kickstarted by Genome sequencing and now has the facility of enhancing genes and even creating new genomes (artificial biology) is triggering a brand new wave. I name this the ’Biowave’. Gene enhancing will allow us to remedy many illnesses completely. It will even empower us to breed higher vegetation which have a better yield, extra pest resistance, and want lesser fertilizers. Through artificial biology, we will create microbes that may sequester carbon (decreasing international warming), eat plastics, and wastes, and clear up oil spills.
Human genetic sequencing is a tough difficulty. Is that additionally within the works at KGDC?
In truth, human genetic information may give us essentially the most worth. However, there are a lot of points to contemplate when gathering, storing and sharing human genetic information with regard to privateness, ethics and our rights. So, we should rigorously contemplate all this and draw the mandatory pointers to incorporate human genetic information additionally in KGDC. I hope we can try this within the subsequent 6 to 12 months.
You talked about how KGDC will assist startups to return up on this space. Could you clarify?
The useful genomic information and the highly effective Data Centre gives a super base for startups to create new merchandise and options. Working intently with the Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM) we hope to encourage native entrepreneurs in addition to individuals from the world over to return to Kerala and work with KGDC.
The KGDC relies in Trivandrum. Why Trivandrum?
Trivandrum is a perfect place to find the Kerala Genome Data Centre because of a variety of causes. a) A crew of bio-informaticians is required to arrange and handle the middle. The Department of Computational Biology (DCB) primarily based at Kerala University and headed by Dr Achusankar Nair has the assets for this. They have been additionally instrumental in getting ready the proposal for the KGDC challenge. b). The Digital University is the perfect place to host the Data Centre with out KGDC incurring any further prices The Science park which will probably be coming close by will present area for startups and firms transferring right here. c) Trivandrum has an excellent ecosystem of life sciences establishments just like the Rajiv Gandhi Center of Biotechnology, Sri Chitra
Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology, Jawaharlal Nehru Tropical Garden and Research Institute in addition to the upcoming Bio 360 Life Sciences park with numerous organizations inside it.
In an earlier dialog, you talked about the linkages the Genome Centre can have with different universities like CUSAT, which not too long ago introduced a tie-up with Synthite for biotech analysis.
Genomic Data will probably be crucial to all life sciences establishments inside Kerala and outdoors. The Centre of Excellence for Synthetic Biology and Biomanufacturing arising in CUSAT is the primary of its type in India and KGDC can have nice synergies with that middle. Synthetic biology is determined by Genomics sequencing and DNA synthesis and therefore KGDC will be capable to help them properly.
KOCHI: Sam Santhosh, an entrepreneur with a 35-year observe document, is sometimes called the ‘Genome man of India’ after he incubated and launched a number of corporations within the life sciences area. Currently, Santhosh, because the biotech advisor for Kerala Development and Innovation Strategy Council (Ok-DISC), helps the Kerala authorities to arrange the Kerala Genome Data Centre. Edited excerpts from a telephonic interview
Can you clarify the fundamental thought behind the Kerala Genome Data Centre? What are its foremost aims?
The Kerala Genome Data Centre (KGDC) is a high-capacity information middle that may allow us to harness the facility of genomic information and the wealthy biodiversity of Kerala. This middle would function a knowledge hub for researchers, healthcare professionals, and public well being officers to entry and share genomic information. The information could be generated by sequencing samples from a spread ofsources, together with animals, vegetation, and environmental samples, and could be used to raised perceive illness transmission, establish new therapies and therapies, and monitor the emergence of recent illnesses. It could be a vital base for analysis establishments, hospitals and biotech corporations to supply personalised medication and develop new merchandise, and for bioinformatics and diagnostic startups and software program corporations to create value-added platforms and instruments utilizing AI and Machine Learning. This challenge is underneath Ok-DISC whose goal is to develop it as a Centre of Excellence in Genomics, in step with the Government’s purpose of remodeling Kerala’s financial system right into a information financial system.googletag.cmd.push(operate() googletag.show(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); );
Biotechnology is a high-end and area of interest space. Do you assume Kerala would have the capability to produce a excessive variety of human assets required on this space, particularly given the truth that Kerala is weak within the increased training sector?
Kerala has over 125 life sciences establishments which have been largely working in silos. We are hoping that KGDC will be the information spine that may deliver all these establishments collectively. Kerala additionally has numerous instructional establishments that may create the core human assets wanted. Kerala may also appeal to expertise from the remainder of India and the world and thus intention to turn into a information centre for Genomics.
You appear to counsel biotechnology is the subsequent massive sector that will set off a brand new wave, each by way of financial progress and job creation. Could you elaborate?
I imagine this century is the one for Biology. The revolution in Biology was kickstarted by Genome sequencing and now has the facility of enhancing genes and even creating new genomes (artificial biology) is triggering a brand new wave. I name this the ’Biowave’. Gene enhancing will allow us to remedy many illnesses completely. It will even empower us to breed higher vegetation which have a better yield, extra pest resistance, and want lesser fertilizers. Through artificial biology, we will create microbes that may sequester carbon (decreasing international warming), eat plastics, and wastes, and clear up oil spills.
Human genetic sequencing is a tough difficulty. Is that additionally within the works at KGDC?
In truth, human genetic information may give us essentially the most worth. However, there are a lot of points to contemplate when gathering, storing and sharing human genetic information with regard to privateness, ethics and our rights. So, we should rigorously contemplate all this and draw the mandatory pointers to incorporate human genetic information additionally in KGDC. I hope we can try this within the subsequent 6 to 12 months.
You talked about how KGDC will assist startups to return up on this space. Could you clarify?
The useful genomic information and the highly effective Data Centre gives a super base for startups to create new merchandise and options. Working intently with the Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM) we hope to encourage native entrepreneurs in addition to individuals from the world over to return to Kerala and work with KGDC.
The KGDC relies in Trivandrum. Why Trivandrum?
Trivandrum is a perfect place to find the Kerala Genome Data Centre because of a variety of causes. a) A crew of bio-informaticians is required to arrange and handle the middle. The Department of Computational Biology (DCB) primarily based at Kerala University and headed by Dr Achusankar Nair has the assets for this. They have been additionally instrumental in getting ready the proposal for the KGDC challenge. b). The Digital University is the perfect place to host the Data Centre with out KGDC incurring any further prices The Science park which will probably be coming close by will present area for startups and firms transferring right here. c) Trivandrum has an excellent ecosystem of life sciences establishments just like the Rajiv Gandhi Center of Biotechnology, Sri Chitra
Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology, Jawaharlal Nehru Tropical Garden and Research Institute in addition to the upcoming Bio 360 Life Sciences park with numerous organizations inside it.
In an earlier dialog, you talked about the linkages the Genome Centre can have with different universities like CUSAT, which not too long ago introduced a tie-up with Synthite for biotech analysis.
Genomic Data will probably be crucial to all life sciences establishments inside Kerala and outdoors. The Centre of Excellence for Synthetic Biology and Biomanufacturing arising in CUSAT is the primary of its type in India and KGDC can have nice synergies with that middle. Synthetic biology is determined by Genomics sequencing and DNA synthesis and therefore KGDC will be capable to help them properly.
