ABI joins call for Aussie roo genome

Sequencing instrument company Applied Biosystems has joined the call for a marsupial genome project to be conducted in Australia rather than the US.

Supporting a push by Prof Jenny Graves of the Australian National University, Richard Harrison, ABI's genetic analysis and information product marketing manager, said it was important for "a significant stake" of the project to be conducted in Australia.

"Our perception is that Australia is not really making the same effort in genomics as even other countries in our region," Harrison said. "New Zealand's commitment to genetics is quantifiably greater than Australia's."

Harrison said the Australian researcher community had the expertise to do the project. "The only thing they don't have is the tools," he said.

"If I could congratulate Jenny Graves on one thing in particular, it would be for raising awareness of big biology."

ABI rose to prominence in the global sequencing market after teaming up with Craig Venter's Celera Genomics in the early days of the Human Genome Project.