7. University of Southampton (USO)

Partner Leader : Tom Brown

Weblink : http://www.atdbio.com/tbgroup/

Tom Brown has expertise in Nucleic Acid Chemistry and its application to genetic analysis. In particular a background in the synthesis of chemically-modified oligonucleotides, fluorescence and the thermodynamic and structural properties of DNA containing modified bases. This expertise will be used in the READNA project to develop new methods of DNA sequencing by ligation. This is in collaboration with Dr Kalim Mir, Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics, Oxford, and Dr Achillefs Kapanidis in the Physics Department at Oxford University.

Tasks in the project include :

• Multi-base sequencing by ligation by looking at various cleavage strategies.
• Complexity reduction of sequencing by synthesis (SBS) by developing new improved universal bases.
• Involved in Real-time polymerase based SBS by fluorescence modulation. Specifically developing base-specific modifiers that can modulate fluorescence.