From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
The Beijing Genomics Institute, founded in 1998, achieved international prominence as a center for sequencing the human genome. BGI completed one percent of the human genome for the international Human Genome Project. Current research at BGI includes studying the gene of livestock and crops. A cooperative project with Danish partners focuses on the pig genome. BGI's pionering work on the rice genome was featured on the cover of Science magazine in April 2002.
Today the BGI staff of 500 hundred, led by Director YANG Huangming [aka Henry Yang], are in the forefront of genome research. In Spring 2003, BGI was one of the first laboratories in the world to sequence the SARS virus. Current research includes drug discovery.
The Beijing Genomics Institute has both a private and a public character. The Beijing Genomics Institute receives funds both from private investors and the Chinese government. The laboratory is also the Bioinformatics Center of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
The Beijing Genome Institute Hangzhou [Zhejiang] branch and Zhejiang University in October 2003 founded a new research institute, The James D. Watson Institue of Genome Sciences. The Watson Institute is intended to become a major center for research and education in East Asia modeled after Cold Spring Harbor.
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THE RICE GENOME: Beijing Genomics Institute: From Standing Start to Sequencing Superpower by Dennis Normile Good timing and determination have helped geneticist Yang Huanming create an institute that has catapulted China into the front ranks of sequencing Science April 2002
