In an initiative to reward creative solutions for next-generation sequencing (NGS) analysis, Appistry launched a pipeline challenge. Any U.S.-based researcher is eligible to enter the competition, which started yesterday and ends on August 15, 2014. The winner will receive $70,000 worth of bioinformatics tools, software, hardware, and support to develop and build a production-grade pipeline.

“If we’ve learned anything while helping our customers implement production-grade pipelines—pipelines capable of being used reliably and repeatedly in a controlled, clinical setting—it’s that they are difficult to build,” said Dr. Rich Mazzarella, chief scientific officer at Appistry and one of the judges for the Appistry Pipeline Challenge. “It requires expertise in everything from bioinformatics to high-performance computing, and not everyone has access to resources that can streamline development and deployment. Appistry is leveling the playing field by spurring creativity and helping one team transform its innovative idea into a solution that can drive clinical research and genomically enhanced medicine.”

The prize package from Appistry is composed of a one-year license to commercial versions of industry-leading NGS analysis tools from the Broad Institute, including the Genome Analysis Toolkit, MuTect, ContEst, and Somatic Indel Detector; Appistry’s Ayrris® On Ramp Program for NGS analysis, which provides a developer workstation with installed software for managing tools, data, and pipelines; preconfigured analysis tools and starter pipelines; and eight hours of training from Appistry.

A panel of judges will determine the competition’s winner based on the quality of the overall entry; the need for a solution to the problem the project addresses; the innovation displayed in the tools selected and their use in the pipeline; and the impact the solution will have on clinical research or precision medicine. The winner will be announced on August 28, 2014.

Potential entrants can learn more about the Appistry Pipeline Challenge and ask questions during a live webinar on Thursday, July 24. Register by visiting https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/693194248.

More information about the Appistry Pipeline Challenge is available at appistry.com/contest, or by following the contest at #PickMyPipeline on Twitter.

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