福利姬自慰

Software tool built by 福利姬自慰startup shares genetic data with COVID-19 researchers around the world

Marc Fiume sits at a computer, a monitor displaying the DNAstack logo is in the backbround
Co-founded by 福利姬自慰alumnus Marc Fiume, DNAstack launched a search engine aimed at the global research community that scans and indexes genomic information about the novel coronavirus (photo by Jeff Beardall)

One of the most puzzling things about the novel coronavirus is how it affects people in such different ways. 

Among a single group of very similar people of the same age, some who contract COVID-19 will be asymptomatic, others mildly ill, while still others will be seriously sick and some will die.

Marc Fiume doesn鈥檛 know why this is the case. The University of Toronto alumnus is a computer scientist, not a medical researcher. But he does know what the scientists studying the virus and developing treatments need: a near-constant flow of information. 

So he and his colleagues at DNAstack are adapting their health-oriented search engine technology to a new tool . 

鈥淲hat we know about the virus is changing hourly as researchers and clinicians accumulate and analyze data,鈥 says Fiume, who earned his PhD, master鈥檚 and bachelor鈥檚 degrees from U of T. 鈥淪o we are deploying our technologies at DNAstack to support researchers investigating the virus.鈥

Dubbed COVID-19 Beacon, DNAstack launched their new tool in late March. It鈥檚 a search engine that scans and indexes genomic information about the virus shared by scientists from around the world, making it possible for users to share and discover knowledge about the genetics of the virus in real time.

Researchers can then use the information 鈥 a mix of the virus鈥檚 genome (a complete set of genes) and other biological data 鈥 to see how the virus is changing as it moves through the global population.

鈥淏y sharing this genomic information over a cloud-based global network, there is the potential to improve knowledge of COVID-19 at a speed and scale that isn鈥檛 otherwise possible,鈥 Fiume says. 

鈥淭hat will contribute to new ways to fight the virus, such as the development of a vaccine.鈥

Fiume launched DNAstack with partner Ryan Cook in 2014. The startup received support and guidance from 福利姬自慰Entrepreneurship.  As Fiume told MaRS Magazine two years ago, the inspiration to start the company came from his best friend, Dan, who has cystic fibrosis. Genetic disease is 鈥溾ctually a very common problem. If you talk to anyone, within one or two degrees of separation they have someone in their family, or someone close to them, who鈥檚 affected by a genetic disease.鈥 But given the complexity of individuals鈥 genetic make-up, Fiume said he quickly realized that his field 鈥 computer science 鈥 would play an important role in the search for treatments for genetic ailments. 

Since then, the startup has built software to facilitate collaborative biomedical research and has partnered with leaders in cloud computing, sequencing, software and security to form the Canadian Genomics Cloud to further research discovery. DNAstack has also embarked on a partnership with Autism Speaks to enhance the agency鈥檚 research portal. Through the collaboration, DNAstack organized one of the largest collections of autism genomes in the world and made them more easily accessible and able to be analyzed by researchers. 

鈥淒NAstack has demonstrated remarkable leadership in its innovative and collaborative approach towards finding a solution for COVID-19,鈥 says Sue Paish, CEO of Canada鈥檚 Digital Technology Supercluster, a cross-industry collaboration of diverse organizations, including DNAstack, that aims to position Canada as a global leader in digital technologies. 

鈥淭he global opportunity to aggregate, track and share real-time data across medical communities has enormous potential to unlock a cure for the virus.鈥

DNAstack is getting noticed 鈥 and supported, too.  Prime Minister Justin Trudeau recently mentioned the company in his April 21 announcement about the bold ideas being put forth by groups working with Canada鈥檚 Digital Technology Supercluster. And the company鈥檚 COVID-19 tool was one of the winning submissions in Roche Canada鈥檚 Open Innovation Challenge, which called for solutions to the challenges of the pandemic.

COVID-19 Beacon is a first step in DNAstack鈥檚 efforts to support the research community with cloud-based tools for conducting research on the novel coronavirus.

鈥淭his service is intended to help share data on COVID-19 as broadly as possible and connect a global ecosystem of data generators and researchers,鈥 says Fiume. 鈥淲e鈥檙e urging researchers who are interested in making data available through this service, or using it for analysis, to get in touch with us.鈥

Fiume notes that scientists developing drugs and vaccines for COVID-19 are in a much stronger position today because of the increasing sophistication of technology. 

鈥淭he technology is so much better than it was even five years ago. We now have better tools for cloud computing, more mature standards for data sharing and better frameworks for machine learning 鈥 and the technology keeps improving. We also have a better ability to understand genetics and translate that into precision medicines.鈥

While the world waits for a vaccine to be developed, Fiume says DNAstack will do what it can to help researchers in their quest. 鈥淲e鈥檙e trying to do our part to minimize the impact of COVID-19,鈥 he says.

鈥淭here is so much that scientists don鈥檛 understand about this virus. Our job is to get people the information they need, so we can find solutions and get people back to normal.鈥

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