Abstract

Big Data in Next Generation Sequencing (NGS): Challenges and Chances

Jurgen Eils, Head, German Cancer Research Centre

The Bioinformatics group at DKFZ provides project-wide services in a number of research networks, in particular all German activities within the international IHEC and ICGC networks (central data management and bioinformatics). Furthermore, we actively collaborate with the Heidelberger Center for Personalized Oncology (DKFZ-HIPO) and the National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) in the development of sequencing solutions for personalized oncology, e.g., by establishing standardized rapid sequencing and data analysis procedures for clinical sequencing of tumor patients. Our pipelines are in routine use in the three German ICGC projects, in most of currently more than 50 projects within the Heidelberg Center of Personalized Oncology and in several other collaboration projects. We have participated in the first ICGC pipeline benchmark, and the DKFZ is leading the bioinformatics analysis of the currently ongoing second ICGC pipeline benchmark. Together with the US Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) the ICGC is organizing actually in 6 worldwide leading centers a comparison study. The so called pan cancer study comprises a data set of Whole Genome Sequqnzing (WGS) data of more than 2000 individuals. The DKFZ in Heidelberg is one of these centers.