Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.uz) — The 1,000 Genomes of Uzbekistan project will become part of the new BIOME Center for Cell Technologies, which will be established in the country to bring together genomic research, bioinformatics, artificial intelligence and medical product development. A memorandum on implementing the project was signed in Seoul on 14 September in the presence of the presidents of Uzbekistan and South Korea.
The BIOME Center will be established on the basis of the Center for Advanced Technologies of the Academy of Sciences of Uzbekistan. It will serve as a full-cycle technological platform covering the collection and study of cellular material, the development of cell-based products and their subsequent use in clinical practice.
A biobank for storing collections of cellular material and providing samples for scientific research will be one of the key elements of the infrastructure. Genomic technologies will be used to study the properties and stability of cell lines, while bioinformatics and artificial intelligence will be used to analyze large volumes of biomedical data and identify new medical solutions.
The cell technologies being developed are planned to be used in the treatment of tumors, the restoration of damaged tissues and the treatment of diseases for which existing methods are not sufficiently effective.
Part of the required infrastructure is already operational. The country’s first stem cell bank has been established at the Center for Advanced Technologies and stores more than 1,200 samples. The cell-based products developed are used to treat burns, restore tissues, and in maxillofacial surgery and ophthalmology. In addition, an NK-cell-based drug for the treatment of cancer has been prepared for implementation.
The future BIOME infrastructure will also include the 1,000 Genomes of Uzbekistan project. As part of the project, data from more than 1,200 participants containing around 10 million genetic markers have been collected. The database is being used to develop a genetic map of the country’s population, assess disease risks and advance personalized medicine.
The creation of BIOME will allow existing developments and data to be brought together within a single scientific and technological infrastructure and expand the scale of genomic and cell research in Uzbekistan.
