NEW YORK (GenomeWeb News) — A South American effort to create a database of sequence data from the continent’s “vast biodiversity” will use CLC Bio’s software, data analysis tools, training, and other services, the company said today.
Under a commercial agreement, the Genomic Heritage and Local Wisdom project, or PGSL, will include universities and government agencies from all over South America to harvest and preserve genomic data from “ancient and traditional therapeutic healthcare substances,” the company said.
The PGSL also hopes to minimize "bio-piracy” or the problem of “non-native scientists harvesting and using genetic materials from South America for copyrighted products.”
At a recent meeting of many member agencies, CLC Bio vice president Jan Lomholdt said it is “vital to gain a deeper understanding of the unique species in Amazonia, Patagonia, and the Galápagos Islands,” among other regions.
He added that increasing knowledge of South American biodiversity is essential to “help increase the overall level of understanding of genetics and bioinformatics.”
Terms of the alliance were not disclosed.