News of human genome map has made field of Biotech (BT) to shift into higher gear. It gave new births to countless research and growth in Genomic Information and Bioinformatics industry. The Bioinformatics research requires high performance computing (HPC) and moreover, open source application is utilized in core of the research.

Latest biotechnology that deals with human embryonic or genetics is quite different from traditional biotech fields that deal with plants, animals and growing that has thousands of years of history. The modern biotech industry can be referred to as research in useful technology for medical purposes. The resultants require absolute compatibility, precision, and safety. Therefore, in today’s highly, timely competitive world, Biotech and IT must come together.

Open Source: Most ideal for BT
Professor Dongwon Chu of Korea Bio PolyTech Institute which runs independent genome researches with its own Bioinformatics system said, "Combined use of system database which delivers diverse biological resources along with biological information analysis system software, IT plays most critical role for the finding useful data in nucleotide and amino acid sequences."

The Bioinformatic system infrastructure and hardware completed in 2006 was modeled after year's worth of case study basing from Genome map of Celera (US) and Kyoto Institute for chemistry (Japan) where the professor Chu had studied. The main system is comprised of huge servers that can process extensive volume of biotech analysis, a workstation to discover symbiotic results from nucleic acid and protein sequence runs, and built-in PCR (polymerase chain reaction) device to speed up targeted DNA processes as part of its Linux infrastructure. In other words, the system was built on collaboration of BT and IT where open source was utilized as main IT source.

Bioinformatics analysis software which runs on BLAST (Basic Local Alignment Search Tool) set of similarity search programs designed to explore the entire available sequence database to check cross relation and homology regardless of whether the query is protein or DNA to find out formation of nucleotides. The BLAST tool module is highly compatible to run on Linux platform with advantage of considerably faster result compared to running on other platform.

In addition, in order to determine homology (common ancestry genes) of genome or identical relationships among lineages (phylogenic origin) within DNA chain and protein chain blocks, more meaningful results is produced to compare comparative genomic information. Here, BLAST's MySQL database (open source software) is used. In addition, all the results of analysis are made available in charts and graphics through open source based web browsing interface.

Professor Chu, "a single gene is comprised of hundreds of thousand elements. That is why using present method it will be very difficult to evaluate enormous amount of analytical data being produced. That can take up to one month using PC or in single server environment. Analyzing DNA sequence takes so much speed. And that can decide the success or failure in commercialization of microbial industry." And Linux system was chosen to help alleviate this kind of problem he added.

Professor Chu also pointed out that eight bioinformatics packages developed by SmallSoft (Korean venture) were purchased to build database and run analysis for the Genome project. The system was built using domestic Korean product because of substantial cost savings compared to that of using overseas solution product which could cost more than $3 million.

Opening door to expansion of future genome projects
Professor Chu highly praises the current genome project for its high reliability and performance. The institute is currently running its own independent and commissioned genome project researches. It also offers related education for students and producing professionals in this field.

Further, it can produce the results of the studies in mere 3 to 4 days and has made the system available to its many affiliates (commercial, educational, research firms) to be shared. There are around 10 firms using the system now.

Professor Chu also said its next genome project involves studies on eukaryotic or prokaryotic organism and also plans to participate in genome or human research projects as a leading authority in both domestic and abroad. In addition, it plans to cooperate with domestic and overseas firms that are running the genome projects to assist in areas of huge data analysis and also with agricultural sectors such as in traceability system too.

"Open source software has now successfully reached well into next generation of biotech fields too. It will now play a crucial role as building blocks of high-tech infrastructures of tomorrow." stressed by director Youngmin Yu of KIPA (Korea IT Industry Promotion Agency)