John Hearn and Liang Hongsheng sign the agreement between the University and the BGI.
The University has signed a formal agreement with China's leading genomics institute, opening the way for a new range of joint research projects and academic exchanges. BGI - formerly the Beijing Genomics Institute - was set up in 1999 as one of the contributors to the International Human Genome Project. After relocating to Shenzhen in 2007, it has become one of the world's most active genomics research centres, a symbol of the growing investment in scientific research in China. BGI has been involved in a number of large-scale genomic sequencing projects including the rice plant, 40 species of silkworms and the giant panda. A reporter for the magazine Newsweek, visiting BGI earlier this year, noted that the institute had purchased 128 cutting-edge genome sequencing machines, each costing US $500,000, "making it possible for the BGI to produce more high quality DNA-sequence data than all US academic facilities put together". Sydney's memorandum of understanding with BGI follows a visit to the University earlier this year by the Chinese Minister of Science and Technology, Wan Gong, coordinated by the International portfolio. Professor John Hearn, the Deputy Vice-Chancellor International, said: "BGI is engaged in some extraordinary work that will help future generations face up to global challenges.
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