Catawba College and Eremid® Genomic Services, LLC, (Eremid), a specialist genomics contract research provider, opened the Bill and Shari Graham Genomics Laboratory specializing in genomic sequencing at Eremid's facilities on the North Carolina Research Campus (NCRC) in Kannapolis, North Carolina.
Eremid's Dr. Francisco Camacho, Director of the Graham Genomics Lab, and Professor Affiliate of Catawba College, offer a unique undergraduate genomics course focusing on next-generation DNA sequencing (NGS), beginning in Spring 2023. Students learn clinical laboratory procedures and develop the hands-on skills to perform the most challenging laboratory techniques. The Graham Genomics Lab offers the only undergraduate NGS training in the United States and, combined with an academic-private partnership, will equip Catawba College students with real-world skills in the growing genomics arena.
"Training in these advanced genomics techniques is usually only available to graduate students," said Dr. Constance Rogers Lowery, Provost and Professor of Biology at Catawba. "It is exciting that training Catawba College's undergraduates is the focus of the laboratory. A unique element of this collaboration is giving our students a window into the business side of science, along with exposing them to additional career pathways in science as a profession."
The Graham Genomics Lab boasts next generation sequencing platforms from leading technology providers, including Illumina® and Pacific Biosystems. Catawba students will acquire hands-on skills as they conduct research projects and work with innovative sequencing equipment. They participate in multi-disciplinary, multi-platform research from concept through to data delivery and interpretation. This experience will provide them with a distinct advantage as they enter their careers and graduate programs.
“We are thrilled to partner with Catawba College in providing this one-of-a-kind lab that will enable students to gain experience that will provide them a path into a truly world-changing area of research,” said Dr. Camacho. “Genomics is the wave of the future, and Eremid’s collaboration with Catawba College will provide the guidance for students to ride new cutting-edge technology and clinically relevant training to master that future.”
