Chippenham-based Arkivum, a leading provider for long-term, large-scale data archiving, has been selected by Bristol Genetics Laboratory (BGL) for its increasing storage demands.
The BGL provides genetic analysis to the South West as well as specialist services across the UK and abroad. Its services include testing for a plethora of genetic disorders, including Huntington disease and cystic fibrosis, as well as analysis of the genetic profile of cancer cells, which can be a key determinant in the treatment a patient receives.
“Providing assured and guaranteed data integrity for very long periods of time is a crucial element in why organisations generating genetic data are using services such as ours”
Thanks to high throughput, next-generation analysis techniques the time it takes to sequence DNA has been reduced to hours, or mere minutes when analysing a smaller specific section. However, the comparative ease of modern sequencing presents an issue in terms of data storage.
Nik Stanbridge, VP of marketing at Arkivum, anticipates genetic data to be a major new market for archiving and cloud-based storage: “Clinicians are routinely requesting more comprehensive genetic testing and this is of course generating more data. The technology that is being used to do the testing is becoming cheaper as are the tests themselves and this is fuelling the ability for more tests to be requested.”
Bristol Genetics Laboratory performs around 30,000 analyses a year producing a huge volume of genetic sequence data, and also digital imagery from techniques such as fluorescence in-situ hybridisation which enables visualisation of chromosomes.
Data guaranteed for a quarter of a century
The Arkivum/100 promises 100% data integrity for 25 years and excellent protection. “Providing assured and guaranteed data integrity for very long periods of time is a crucial element in why organisations generating genetic data are using services such as ours,” explains Nik. BGL estimates that sequencing over the next two years will create 30 terabytes of data. Arkivum/100 can offer multiple petabytes of data, providing a long term solution for BGL, in a more cost effective way than local IT.
This data will need to be highly secure, due to the sensitive nature. Arkivum is fully compliant with NHS Information Governance Toolkit requirements and delivered by the NHS N3 data network ensuring security standards. The archived data also remains accessible. This is vital as future progress in genetic analytics may be able to reveal new information from previously archived data.
You can see more from Arkivum at the Arkivum website or by following them on Twitter: @Arkivum. While you are at it, why not follow us as well! @TechSPARKuk
You may like: Interview: Deborah Wilder, app developer and health psychologist
