Chinese genomics giant enters B.C. health research partnership

Five B.C. health-industry groups have agreed to form a research partnership with Chinese genomics giant BGI to advance medical technologies such as the treatment of cancer, officials said Wednesday.

The five groups — Providence Health Care, St. Paul’s Foundation, Vancouver Prostate Centre, Genome B.C., and Deloitte — will work with BGI to apply genomesequencing technology to patient therapy. No specific monetary figure for the partnership or details of the research projects were released.

The lack of specific numbers does not overshadow the potential magnitude of the agreement, said Pascal Spothelfer, president and CEO of Genome B.C.

“It’s a long-term project,” Spothelfer said, noting that some research on patient health outcomes will begin in the near future. “BGI is truly a global expert on how to sequence a large number of genomes. … They can operate wherever they want. For them to choose B.C. as a core partner really validates the work that’s being done at UBC, at the other universities, and at the health authorities.”

Despite its name, BGI, or the Bei- jing Genomics Institute, is based in Shenzhen (near Hong Kong in southern China). It is the world’s largest genome-sequencing and research centre, with 7,000 employees.

Yiwu He, senior vice-president and global head of R&D for BGI, said China has been pushing genetics research in the last two decades (BGI was founded in 1999) and has been actively looking to take its research to larger, global platforms. Wednesday’s agreement is BGI’s first foray into Canada, although its footprint can be found from the United States to Europe.

“We want to co-operate with the best researchers around the world to overcome some of the top medical challenges of our time,” He said on BGI’s choice to enter B.C. “We want to be able to understand whether babies will have hereditary conditions, even before they are born, so we can formulate a treatment so that they are born in the best health possible. We want to make sure seniors can enjoy a higher quality of life in terms of health maintenance, and we are constantly seeking larger platforms.”

Spothelfer said Genome B.C. has similar agreements with groups in Britain, adding that B.C. researchers can now apply their expertise on a much larger scale.

We want to cooperate with the best researchers around the world to overcome some of the top medical challenges of our time.