Benzinga | Sep 27, 2021 09:08AM EDT

Pacific Biosciences Of California Reports Partnership With European Reference Genome Atlas Initiative

Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. (NASDAQ:PACB)("Pacific Biosciences" or "PacBio"), a leading provider of high-quality, highly accurate sequencing platforms, today announced a partnership with The European Reference Genome Atlas (ERGA) consortium to support its efforts in understanding and protecting biodiversity by generating high-quality reference genomes for European plant and animal species.

Biodiversity is under threat worldwide with a high number of European species at risk of extinction1. Genomics is a powerful tool to help understand biology and how ecosystems function. PacBio's HiFi Sequencing technology allows scientists to take the first important step by reliably generating high-quality genetic maps of each plant and animal species. Studies have shown that reference-quality genomes provide the most complete insight into the genetic basis that forms each species2.

"Together, PacBio and ERGA aim to put Europe's biodiversity on the path to recovery by 2030," said Neil Ward, Vice President and General Manager of EMEA at PacBio. "Each plant and animal species has a unique genome and they range in complexity. Since HiFi Sequencing reads are both large and accurate, scientists can easily assemble, phase, and analyze genomes with confidence."

ERGA seeks to increase coordination across all countries of the European continent, in tandem with international partners, to generate reference-quality, complete and error-free genome assemblies for at least 200,000 plant and animal species - across Europe.

"With accurate reference genomes, scientists can gain the most complete insight into a species' genetic basis to understand its evolutionary history and also predict its future adaptation potential," said Camila Mazzoni, Chair, ERGA, Research Group Leader at Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research. "We're excited to welcome PacBio to the ERGA initiative and look forward to our coordinated effort to generate complete reference genomes for all European biodiversity, which will accelerate conservation initiatives and advance biodiversity genomics innovation."

This partnership expands PacBio's continued support for worldwide and regional consortiums, including the Darwin Tree of Life and Aquatic Symbiosis Genomics initiatives with the Wellcome Sanger Institute, the Vertebrate Genomes Project, the Earth BioGenome Project and the California Conservation Genomics Project. These initiatives are dedicated to preserving, monitoring and cataloging biodiversity with actionable and accurate genomic data.

To learn more, please visit the PacBio website.