Journal club: crossborder genomics in Africa

We have learned during the COVID-19 pandemic that more extensive genomic surveillance capacity is a huge benefit, regardless of which context those experts reside in. The pandemic response has drawn on the expertise of scientists from human, bacterial and fungal genomics as well as virology. Any initiatives which aim to boost global capacity for genomics and increase the number of sequences across all species will contribute to greater future preparedness.

In this discussion, Dr Leigh Jackson, COG-Train scientific lead, introduces you to a scientific article about the African BioGenome Project. You can access the article here or download it below.

Read the article and discuss the following questions in the comments below:

• What is novel about the African BioGenome Project compared to previous sequencing endeavours within Africa?
• What are some of the major Ethical, Legal and Social Issues (ELSI) faced by such a broad and ambitious project?
• What are the benefits of sequencing the genomes of animal and plant species?

If you have any other thoughts or questions about the article and or project, then please feel free to share and discuss them below.