Singapore Single-Cell Research Centre opens door for Asian Biological Discoveries

Government officials, academic, and industry leaders gathered to celebrate the official opening of the Single-Cell Omics Centre (SCOC) in Singapore on 12 April 2013. It is the first research centre in Asia exclusively dedicated to accelerating the understanding of how individual cells work, and how diagnosis and treatment might be enhanced through insight derived from single cells. This centre will be an important resource for both academic and industry researchers in Singapore and the region, who are keen to access integrated analytics for single-cell genomic applications.

The Single-Cell Omics Centre is a collaboration between the Genome Institute of Singapore (GIS), an institute under the umbrella of the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), and Fluidigm Corporation, an industry leader in single-cell genomics.

“The opening of the Single-Cell Omics Centre is a perfect example of an academic-industry partnership. By encouraging multi-disciplinary collaborations, this centre will play a key role in developing Singapore’s R&D capabilities and scientific know-how. It is also envisioned that this will lead to new, potentially life-saving applications in the regional biomedical sector,” said Mr Lim Chuan Poh, Chairman A*STAR.

“Fluidigm is an industry leader in single cell genomics and we are proud to have played a critical role in supporting its growth as its first Asian investor,” said Ms Chu Swee Yeok, CEO and President, EDBI.

 The SCOC expects to attract top researchers from Asia to conduct single-cell experimentation for foundational research. Scientists from various fields of biology can band together at the SCOC to learn how stem cells might be re-programmed for therapeutic treatments in the future, or to discover how various diseases work so they can develop new drugs or treatments to cure the sickly, or how to personalise medical care so it can meet the need of each patient.