FASTGenomics actively supports the fight against Covid-19

Comma Soft and FASTGenomics support the fight against Covid-19. FASTGenomics is a proud member of the international HCA Lung Biological Network and herein actively taking part in the research of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Our partners use FASTGenomics as a collaboration, data management and analytics platform and we thus help to accelerate the translation of academic results into medical practice.

Using high-resolution single-cell RNA sequencing of ten-thousands of cells, a recent study (Ziegler et al., 2020, Cell) – featured in MIT News – of the HCA Lung Biological Network identified a subpopulation of cells that may act as an entry portal for the virus into the body. These cells are found in the lungs, nasal passages, and intestines and are associated with a specific gene expression that makes them more susceptible to infection.
The study provides a detailed map of cell-types and their associated biological processes, which will help researchers to develop new vaccines and drug treatments for Covid-19.

More papers of the HCA Human Lung Biological Network with support by Comma Soft and FASTGenomics are underway and highlight entry-genes in the upper airways (Sungnak et al., 2020, Nature Medicine) and their correlation with age, smoking status and gender. More information can be found under HCA Research on Covid-19.

Image credit: Novel Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 by NIAID-RML (CC BY 2.0)