Speakers' Abstracts


Dr Quin Wills,
Simugen Ltd, 2 Oakington Business Park, Dry Drayton Road,
Oakington, Cambridge, CB24 3DQ, UK.

The latest technologies to 'open up' and 'read' what's going on in cells

The phrase 'knowledge comes but wisdom lingers' has almost become a tired cliché in modern molecular science. It is, however, painfully true with the much celebrated technologies that can read how genes, proteins and metabolites are being processed in cells.  In the very near future we will be able to rapidly sequence an entire genome and detect how a gene is being expressed down to the exact count of molecules per cell. What is perhaps unclear is exactly how these will serve the large industries like pharma to make human health products cheaper, better and faster to develop. This discussion will briefly review technology trends, possible challenges, and  reflections on SimuGen's experience as a toxicogenomics company.