54Gene, a Nigerian health tech startup, has launched its human genome sequencing lab.
According to Abasi Ene-Obong, 54Gene CEO, the lab is powered by Novaseq 6000, a best-in-class sequencing technology solution produced by American biotech company Illumina.
The lab is the result of the partnership between Illumina and 54Gene announced back in September.
At the time, Ene-Obong said the partnership would help 54Gene “make advanced molecular diagnostics more accessible to the [Africa] region, while creating hundreds of skilled jobs in molecular biology and bioinformatics.”
With the lab now completed, African samples stored in 54gene’s biobank can be genotyped, sequenced and analyzed without having to send them overseas. This should reduce the financial costs and time taken to carry out these processes.
Beside the capacity for whole human genome sequencing, Ene-Obong says the lab “hosts a suite of other molecular genomics capabilities.”
Founded in 2019, 54Gene has emerged as one of Africa’s most intriguing startups in health research. Its push into DNA research on Africans has earned it recognition for charting the way in a specialised territory where precision engineering meets precision science.
