From DNA To Diagnosis: USTAR Center For Genetic Discovery To Integrate Genome Data Into Patient Care

University of Utah Health Sciences Logo. (PRNewsFoto/Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah)jwplayer.key="2kY/GKwZ2uQZmDlQ9VYArfZt2b4+KhHX3+DM4zisgtE=";SALT LAKE CITY, March 24, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The USTAR Center for Genetic Discovery is partnering with California based Omicia, Inc, to make analyzing a patient's genome as routine as performing a blood test. The center, co-directed by Mark Yandell, Ph.D., and Gabor Marth, D.Sc., was launched this month with $6 million from the University of Utah and the state-funded Utah Science Technology and Research (USTAR) initiative.

Compared to 10 years ago, sequencing the human genome has plummeted in cost by 1 million-fold and can be completed in a fraction of the time. Yet there are still barriers preventing DNA sequence information from routinely being incorporated into patient care.

"Current systems are not prepared for the increasing amounts of data we will be seeing within the next few years," said Marth, a computer scientist who was instrumental in the success of high profile projects such as the Human Genome Project, HapMap Project, and 1,000 Genomes Project. He relocated to the University of Utah from Boston College to apply his skills in a medical setting.

"At some point all of humanity will be sequenced, and potentially more than one genome per individual," he continued. Marth and Yandell will lead efforts to tame the big data to come not only from personal genomes, but also tumor genomes and "metagenomes" from infectious disease agents such as viruses and bacteria.

Knowing the DNA sequence of a cancer patient's tumor, for example, may reveal a personalized treatment plan for combating the disease. Pinpointing tiny sequence variations in personal genomes will expose inherited diseases that, in some cases, may be life-threatening.

"What we want to be able to do is help the kid who is born with a hard-to-diagnose genetic disorder," said Yandell. "Our genome interpretation tools will be able to identify that disorder and guide treatment."

Together with Omicia, Inc., the USTAR Center for Genetic Discovery is building a web accessible informatics platform, called Opal, to distill genome data to clinically relevant findings. Opal is powered by VAAST, a proven disease gene finder algorithm invented by Yandell. Launched less than two years ago, VAAST has successfully identified causes of inherited diseases, including hard-to-diagnose rare diseases, and is used at 251 institutions worldwide.

The USTAR Center for Genetic Discovery eventually anticipates commercializing its full suite of software tools, and becoming a top genomic health data service provider for medical centers nationwide.

Listen to an interview with Gabor Marth.

This news release was issued on behalf of Newswise(TM). For more information, visit http://www.newswise.com.

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SOURCE University of Utah Health Sciences

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The New York Genome Center And IBM Watson Group Announce Collaboration To Advance Genomic Medicine

NEW YORK, March 19, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- The New York Genome Center (NYGC) and IBM (NYSE: IBM) today announced an initiative to accelerate a new era of genomic medicine with the use of IBM's Watson cognitive system. IBM and NYGC will test a unique Watson prototype designed specifically for genomic research as a tool to help oncologists deliver more personalized care to cancer patients.

NYGC and its medical partner institutions plan to initially evaluate Watson's ability to help oncologists develop more personalized care to patients with glioblastoma, an aggressive and malignant brain cancer that kills more than 13,000 people in the U.S. each year. Despite groundbreaking discoveries into the genetic drivers of cancers like glioblastoma, few patients benefit from personalized treatment that is tailored to their individual cancer mutations. Clinicians lack the tools and time required to bring DNA-based treatment options to their patients and to do so, they must correlate data from genome sequencing to reams of medical journals, new studies and clinical records -- at a time when medical information is doubling every five years.

This joint NYGC Watson initiative aims to speed up this complex process, identifying patterns in genome sequencing and medical data to unlock insights that will help clinicians bring the promise of genomic medicine to their patients. The combination of NYGC's genomic and clinical expertise coupled with the power of IBM's Watson system will enable further development and refinement of the Watson tool with the shared goal of helping medical professionals develop personalized cancer care.

The new cloud-based Watson system will be designed to analyze genetic data along with comprehensive biomedical literature and drug databases. Watson can continually 'learn' as it encounters new patient scenarios, and as more information becomes available through new medical research, journal articles and clinical studies. Given the depth and speed of Watson's ability to review massive databases, the goal of the collaboration is to increase the number of patients who have access to care options tailored to their disease's DNA.

"Since the human genome was first mapped more than a decade ago, we've made tremendous progress in understanding the genetic drivers of disease. The real challenge before us is how to make sense of massive quantities of genetic data and translate that information into better treatments for patients," said Robert Darnell, M.D., Ph.D., CEO, President and Scientific Director of the New York Genome Center. "Applying the cognitive computing power of Watson is going to revolutionize genomics and accelerate the opportunity to improve outcomes for patients with deadly diseases by providing personalized treatment."

First Watson Application in Genomic Research
Watson will complement rapid genome sequencing and is expected to dramatically reduce the time it takes to correlate an individual's genetic mutations with reams of medical literature, study findings, and therapeutic indications that may be relevant. The intention is to provide comprehensive information to enable clinicians to consider a variety of treatment options that the clinician can tailor to their patient's genetic mutations. It will also help NYGC scientists understand the data detailing gene sequence variations between normal and cancerous biopsies of brain tumors.

"As genomic research progresses and information becomes more available, we aim to make the process of analysis much more practical and accessible through cloud-based, cognitive innovations like Watson," said Dr. John E. Kelly III, Senior Vice President and Director of IBM Research. "With this knowledge, doctors will be able to attack cancer and other devastating diseases with treatments that are tailored to the patient's and disease's own DNA profiles. If successful, this will be a major transformation that will help improve the lives of millions of patients around the world."

The goal is to have the Watson genomics prototype assist clinicians in providing personalized genomic analytics information as part of a NYGC clinical research study. The solution has been under development for the past decade in IBM's Computational Biology Center at IBM Research.

New York State's Investment in Genomic Medicine
New York State is at the forefront of advancing medical science and commercialization. Governor Andrew M. Cuomo recently proposed $105 million to fund a partnership between NYGC and the University at Buffalo's Center for Computational Research to advance genomics research. This investment to enhance the state's genomic medicine capabilities, together with NYGC's acquisition of Illumina's state-of-the-art HiSeq X Ten whole human genome sequencing system, will accelerate the availability of valuable genomic information in New York.

"New York State's investment in cutting-edge innovative industries is creating jobs and growing the economy in Western New York and across our state," said Governor Cuomo. "This collaboration between the New York Genome Center and IBM will help make the region a new hub for the growing bio-tech industry."

IBM is NYGC's Founding Technology Member and will advance the organization's goals of translating genomic research into clinical solutions for serious disease through the collaboration of medicine, science and technology. As biology increasingly becomes an information science, the promise of genomics is closer to reality with the help of data-driven analytics methods and more powerful computing systems. IBM and NYGC's computational biology experts are renowned for accelerating life sciences discoveries using deep analytical approaches and next generation information technologies.  

Learn more about this story at http://ibm.co/1cXTb6u.

To view a Flickr image gallery that illustrates today's news please click here.

For additional perspectives on this story, please watch this video.

To join the social conversation on Twitter use the hashtag #NYGCWatson. 

Journalists and bloggers can download broadcast video, b-roll and photos about the Watson and New York Genome Center collaboration at http://bit.ly/1dcWlZF. The video is available in HD, standard definition broadcast and streaming quality.

About the New York Genome Center
The New York Genome Center (NYGC) is an independent, nonprofit at the forefront of transforming biomedical research and clinical care with the mission of saving lives. As a consortium of renowned academic, medical and industry leaders across the globe, NYGC focuses on translating genomic research into clinical solutions for serious disease. Our member organizations and partners are united in this unprecedented collaboration of technology, science, and medicine. We harness the power of innovation and discoveries to improve people's lives - ethically, equitably, and urgently. Member institutions include: Albert Einstein College of Medicine, American Museum of Natural History, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Columbia University, Cornell University/Weill Cornell Medical College, Hospital for Special Surgery, The Jackson Laboratory, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York-Presbyterian Hospital, The New York Stem Cell Foundation, New York University, North Shore-LIJ, The Rockefeller University, Roswell Park Cancer Institute and Stony Brook University. For more information, visit: www.nygenome.org.

About IBM Watson
Named after IBM founder Thomas J. Watson, Watson was developed in IBM's Research labs and is now being accelerated into market by the new Watson Group. Watson represents a new class of software, services and apps that think, improve by learning, and discover answers and insights to complex questions from massive amounts of Big Data. Watson's ability to answer complex questions posed in natural language with speed, accuracy and confidence is transforming decision-making across a variety of industries, including health care, financial services and retail. IBM has advanced Watson from a game-playing innovation into a commercial technology. Using natural language processing and analytics, Watson processes information akin to how people think, representing a major shift in an organization's ability to quickly analyze, understand and respond to Big Data. Now delivered from the cloud and able to power new consumer and enterprise services and apps, Watson is 24 times faster, smarter with a 2,400 percent improvement in performance, and 90 percent smaller – IBM has shrunk Watson from the size of a master bedroom to three stacked pizza boxes. IBM is investing $1 billion to introduce a new class of cognitive computing services, software and apps, and investing $100 million to spur innovation for software application providers to develop a new generation of Watson-powered solutions. Learn more about IBM Watson at www.ibmwatson.com. Learn more about IBM Research at www.research.ibm.com.

Learn more about IBM healthcare at ibm.com/smarterhealthcare.

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SOURCE IBM

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Israeli-Based Biometric Security Company, FST21, Opens U.S. Office In 7 World Trade Center

NEW YORK, Feb. 25, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- FST21, the leading biometric security company that uses a fusion of biometric and analytic technologies, announced today the opening of the company's first New York City-based office. The location, at 7 World Trade Center, establishes FST21's presence in the financial epicenter of the city and highlights the importance of convenient security in the area, while also furthering the company's investment in the U.S. market.

FST21's new office features a fully operational installment of the company's biometric security system, including the patented SafeRise In Motion Identification® technology. The security system seamlessly incorporates both biometric and analytic technology developed by the company, allowing for facial recognition, behavior analysis, voice recognition, and more.

"As we continue to expand our business, we are excited to open our office in the heart of New York's business center," says Major-General Aharon Zeevi Farkash, Founder and CEO, FST21. "Over the past year we have furthered our technology development of biometric security to reach over a 99% positive identification rate. The location further establishes our commitment to the U.S. market, while also showcasing our innovative technology in a city plagued by daily security struggles."

The New York City office is the second location in the U.S. for FST21, which also has an office in Sayreville, NJ. The company has already implemented its SafeRise technology within various locations in the New York City area, particularly the famous Knickerbocker Building and the Taino Towers.

The company was founded by Major-General Farkash, a world expert in security and former head of the Israeli Military Intelligence Directorate. For more information on FST21 please click here.

ABOUT FST21:
FST21's SafeRise provides top security and convenience by fusion of real time information for fast and automatic visitor management. It's hassle-free and allows authorized users quick and convenient access. SafeRise's In Motion Identification™ uses a fusion of biometric and analytic technologies that include facial recognition, behavior analysis, voice recognition, LPR, RFID and more.

ABOUT 7 WORLD TRADE CENTER:
7 World Trade Center opened in 2006 as the first office tower to be rebuilt at the World Trade Center.  The building contains 42 office floors above a ten-story base and was New York City's first office building to be certified by the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED) rating system - achieving the gold standard in March 2006. The building's environmental design features include state-of-the-art ultra-clear exterior glass technology, high-efficiency air filtration, energy and water conservation technologies and 15,000 square feet of open park space.

SOURCE FST21

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Biometric Identification System from SRI International Secures Access to E-Commerce Park Data Center in Curaçao

MENLO PARK, Calif., Feb. 25, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- SRI International Sarnoff's Iris on the Move® (IOM) N-Glance™ biometric system is now protecting access to E-Commerce Park Curaçao, the first data center of its kind built in the Pan Caribbean area. E-Commerce Park provides clients with redundant continuity and disaster recovery solutions, including colocation, data storage and private cloud services. IOM N-Glance systems secure access to the colocated servers and data housed at E-Commerce Park Data Center by confirming the identity of authorized employees as they enter the facility as well as the colocation areas.

"A high level of security is critical to our business, where we manage network operations, client support, and redundant Internet access day and night," said Rob Vermeulen, CEO of E-Commerce Park. "Our clients entrust us with business-critical data, and the N-Glance iris recognition system ensures the most accurate method of identity verification of people entering our sensitive facilities."

SRI's IOM N-Glance system is easy to use and non-intrusive. Users simply glance at the system from a comfortable distance to confirm identity and gain access. The system identifies people in less than a second and processes up to 12 people per minute. It captures iris images even if a user is wearing eyeglasses or contact lenses.

"Positive identity authentication is essential for protecting intellectual property and physical IT infrastructure," said Mark Clifton, vice president, Products and Services Division at SRI International. "SRI's N-Glance systems will provide E-Commerce Park Data Center and its clients with trusted identity management in an easy-to-use, practical way."

About E-Commerce Park
E-Commerce Park N.V. is located in Curaçao (www.e-commercepark.com) and in operation since November of 2001. As the first built-for-purpose data center in the Caribbean, ECP is one of the most trusted and stable facilities in the Pan Caribbean region. With 2N redundancies on power, cooling as well as multi-homed network access, ECP is the ideal location for enterprises seeking secure and reliable colocation services. Since August 2007, E-Commerce Park is part of Columbus International, one of the largest telecommunication providers in the Caribbean (www.columbus.co).

For more information on E-Commerce Park, please visit our website or email sales@e-commercepark.com.

About SRI International

SRI International is a nonprofit research and innovation center headquartered in Silicon Valley. Government and business clients worldwide come to SRI for pioneering solutions in biomedical sciences and health, chemistry and materials, computing, education, economic development, energy, security and defense, robotics, sensing, and more. We provide research, laboratory and advisory services, technology development and licenses, deployable systems, products, and venture opportunities. Our innovations have created new industries and marketplace value, and lasting benefits to society. 

Visit SRI's website and Timeline of Innovation to learn more.

SOURCE SRI International

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Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center and Cornerstone Health Care Join in Unique Affiliation

Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center Logo. (PRNewsFoto/Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center)jwplayer.key="2kY/GKwZ2uQZmDlQ9VYArfZt2b4+KhHX3+DM4zisgtE=";WINSTON-SALEM, N.C., Nov. 14, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center today announced that it has entered into a first-of-its-kind strategic affiliation agreement in the Triad with Cornerstone Health Care, P.A. through its wholly-owned management services organization Cornerstone Health Enablement Strategic Solutions, LLC (CHESS).

The goal of the affiliation is to better position both partners for new models of health care delivery driven by health care reform. Both organizations describe the future as one that will emphasize value health care delivery and population management across diseases, such as managing large populations of patients with diabetes or heart failure using a variety of innovative technologies. These future models could allow patients to access support services such as case management, home-based care, weight management and a variety of customized services to support groups of patients with specific diseases or shared characteristics. 

The affiliation supports Wake Forest Baptist's mission to improve health throughout the region. John D. McConnell, M.D., chief executive officer of Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, called the agreement a strategic partnership whose time had come and was driven by a shared vision of patient-centered care that goes beyond the normal boundaries of a hospital or doctor's office. "It is crucial in this challenging health care environment for multiple health care providers to join together and assume accountability for managing and improving health care," McConnell said. "Through better care coordination, we plan to provide more integrated care with fewer duplicated services, increased patient access to support services, and lower total health care costs."

Grace Terrell, M.D., chief executive officer for Cornerstone Health Care, said, "This is the first-of-its-kind Triad partnership between an academic medical center and an independent, multi-specialty provider group. Our joint goal is to enhance the quality of patient care while decreasing overall health care costs by leveraging each organization's strengths to accomplish these objectives."

By partnering through CHESS, Wake Forest Baptist and Cornerstone Health Care immediately expand their capabilities to engage in population management and advanced analytics, with the additional expertise of a world-class research enterprise at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center. The synergies of these important elements will benefit a much larger group of patients, as well as create a highly-sophisticated accountable care organization (ACO) that will include high-performance networks (HPNs), clinical integration, research, innovative IT applications, support services and case management.

More information regarding the specifics of the affiliation will be provided as available.

Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center (wakehealth.edu) is a fully integrated academic medical center located in Winston-Salem, N.C. The institution comprises Wake Forest School of Medicine, a leading center for medical education and research; Wake Forest Baptist Health, the integrated clinical structure that includes nationally ranked Brenner Children's Hospital; Wake Forest Innovations, which promotes the commercialization of research discoveries and operates Wake Forest Innovation Quarter, an urban research and technology park; plus a network of affiliated community hospitals, physician practices, outpatient services and other medical facilities. Wake Forest Baptist clinical programs and the School of Medicine are regularly ranked among the best in the country by U.S. News & World Report.

About Cornerstone Health Care Cornerstone Health Care is a group of more than 370 physicians and mid-level health professionals representing a wide range of specialties.  One of the fastest growing physician groups in the Southeast, Cornerstone is a physician-owned and led multi-disciplinary practice with over 90 locations in communities throughout central North Carolina.  Recognized as a 2012 Success Story Award® winner for patient satisfaction by Press Ganey Associates, Inc., Cornerstone is transitioning from the traditional "fee-for-service" model to a patient-centered medical home system providing expanded access, increased coordination of care, enhanced patient education for prevention and treatment of chronic disease, and sophisticated technological support.  For more information, visit www.cornerstonehealth.com.  Follow Cornerstone on Twitter @CornerstoneHCNC.

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SOURCE Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center

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