The University Medical Center Groningen and Novogene Announce the Start of the 10K Metagenome Project

Groningen, Netherlands and Beijing, China – October 31, 2017 — A research group led by Professor Cisca Wijmenga from the University Medical Center Groningen (UMCG) and Novogene, a leading global provider of genomic services and solutions, today announced a partnership to start the 10K Metagenome Project to further study population-based metagenomics.

The 10K Metagenome Project is initiated by Professor Cisca Wijmenga, Professor Rinse Weersma, Associate Professor Jingyuan Fu, and Associate Professor Alexandra Zhernakova from UMCG. This project aims to analyze 10,000 gut microbiomes from a large, deeply phenotyped population-based cohort in the Netherlands by using next-generation sequencing to study interactions between the microbiome and exogenous and intrinsic host factors. This follows a successful proof of concept study that was published last year in Science (Zhernakova et al., 2016). As part of the partnership, Novogene will provide next-generation sequencing for stool samples collected by UMCG and deliver high-quality data for each metagenome.

“Metagenomic shotgun sequencing allows us to discover intrinsic and exogenous factors that correlate with shifts in the microbiome composition and functionality,” said Professor Cisca Wijmenga, Spinoza Prize winner at UMCG. “Combined with the 8000 phenotypes present in the biobank, this rich dataset will enhance our understanding of which strains and pathways prevent or cause disease, a first step in translational research”.

“By leveraging the largest sequencing capacity in the world as well as our rich experience with next-generation sequencing technology, Novogene is taking an active role in accelerating genomic studies from all over the world,” said Ms. Tingting Zhou, General Manager of Novogene Europe. “It’s a great honor to partner with distinguished scholars from UMCG on the 10K Metagenome Project. This unprecedented study will shed more light on gut metagenomics, and therefore provide a better understanding of human health. We are proud to be part of it.”

About UMCG

The University Medical Center Groningen (UMCG) was established in 2005 as a joint activity of the University of Groningen and the Academic Hospital Groningen (AZG). At present, the UMCG is one of the largest hospitals in the Netherlands and the largest employer in the Northern Netherlands. More than 12,000 employees provide patient care, are involved in medical education and performing cutting-edge scientific research, and are focused on “healthy and active aging”.

About Novogene

Novogene is a leading provider of genomic services and solutions with cutting-edge NGS and bioinformatics expertise and the largest sequencing capacity in the world. Novogene utilizes scientific excellence, a commitment to customer service and unsurpassed data quality to help our clients realize their research goals in the rapidly evolving world of genomics. Novogene delivers unsurpassed data quality to support our customers’ research goals. We are a world-leader in NGS services, with thousands of employees and multiple locations across the globe. Novogene delivers unsurpassed data quality to support our customers’ research goals. We are a world-leader in NGS services, with thousands of employees and multiple locations across the globe. Novogene has strong scientific expertise and experience with 32 NGS-related patents, as well as over 580 research papers with total impact factor at more than 4090, including publications in first tiers journals such as Cell, Nature and Science. For more information, visit novogene.com/amea-en.