GetGenome Story Inspires
Looking back on its first two years, it's evident that GetGenome's impact extends well beyond providing genome sequences and training. The initiative has become a powerful catalyst for transforming how scientists connect and contribute to the global scientific community.
GetGenome is a nonprofit organisation based at The Sainsbury Laboratory, addressing inequity in access to genomics technologies and training.
Even though GetGenome was only established two years ago, the initiative has already facilitated the sequencing of around 400 organisms and plasmids and supported close to a 100 researchers across nine countries.
In a recent publication, GetGenome's team and network share more about the motivations that led to the nonprofit's creation as well as its wide-ranging impact across the Global South.
Read GetGenome: Overcoming inequalities in access to genomics technology
Countries with GetGenome projects to date. Visit https://getgenome.net/impact to find out more.
Genomics for All
Technological advances have made DNA sequencing increasingly more affordable and accessible. In the UK, whole genome sequencing of a bacterial strain can cost only a few dozen pounds, meaning that it's now becoming more feasible for smaller project grants such as PhD projects to access these important data.
However, this scenario doesn't hold true for all countries, particularly those in the Global South where sequencing remains prohibitively expensive, leading to unequal access to genomics and hindering scientific progress.
This disparity was highlighted in 2020 when Sophien Kamoun attended a Tunisian PhD student's thesis defence who was struggling with inconclusive PCR results, when amplifying certain regions in a bacterial genome. Sophien offered to sequence the genome as an option that's commonly employed in his own lab. The surprising result was that the regions that failed to amplify simply weren’t present in the bacterial genome. This low-cost sequencing could have saved months of work and opened new research avenues at a much earlier stage.
Sophien realized that many researchers likely face similar challenges due to the lack of access to affordable sequencing, wasting valuable research time and missing key opportunities.
These setbacks not only hinder individual scientific careers but also delay critical innovations needed to address global challenges.
Genomics for All... but it started with just one. Sophien's interactions with Tunisian early career researchers such as Dr Manel Chaouachi sparked the vision for GetGenome.
Get a Genome in just 4 Steps
GetGenome employs a bottom-up approach enabling biologists across world to access genomics technology so that they can transition into the post-genomics stages of their projects.
The GetGenome logo and branding visuals were designed by Hsuan Pai. Learn more about the process here: https://zenodo.org/records/109...
DEPOSIT your organisms for sequencing in GetGenome’s sample depository. GetGenome will provide the genome sequences and the assembled genomes without the researcher incurring costs. While the primary focus has been on projects concerning non-pathogenic bacteria, the initiative has also engaged with plant and fungal genomics projects.
ACCESS and learn to analyse the genomics data of your organisms. GetGenome arranges the sequencing the organisms and engages with participants through workshops, seminars, symposia and conferences to help build their confidence using genomics data.
SHARE and publish the data using open science principles. GetGenome workshops also focus on open science publishing helping researchers generate accurate and timely reports of data.
As a result, dozens of NCBI accession have been generated and many participants have published a genome announcement “mini-paper” in the free-to-publish and free-to-access repository, Zenodo – a really positive scholarly output that benefits themselves and the scientific community.
NETWORK with other biologists to make the most out of the data. Through its own engagements and events, GetGenome has inspired participants to initiate their own local workshops, fostering collaboration and knowledge exchange among scientists worldwide.
GetGenome participants at the GGTunisia2022 Symposium held in 2023 at Espace Zmorda in Tunis. Credit: James Canham
"We’ve successfully launched Calls for Projects (CFPs) campaigns in Tunisia, Mexico, and Pakistan, supporting dozens of early career researchers as well as more experienced scientists. GetGenome has positively contributed to a wide range of important projects and is empowering many talented researchers." - James Canham, GetGenome Manager
Looking Forward
As GetGenome continues to grow, it's Network is set to grow even faster. With its dedicated team and motivated ambassadors, GetGenome not only possesses the ambition to achieve transformative impact within the genomics space, it also has the agility to pivot and adapt to the evolving needs of society and the scientific community.
With the support of The Sainsbury Laboratory and the Gatsby Charitable Foundation, GetGenome is poised to become a key contributor in a pursuit toward democratisation, ensuring that all researchers have the tools they need to advance their work into the post-genomic era.
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