Press release
Illumina expands genomics capabilities in India with opening of Solutions Center
SAN DIEGO, Aug. 17, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Illumina Inc. (NASDAQ: ILMN), a global leader in DNA sequencing and array-based technologies, today announced the
About this update from Illumina, Inc.
[{"type":"text","content":"SAN DIEGO, Aug. 17, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Illumina Inc. (NASDAQ: ILMN), a global leader in DNA sequencing and array-based technologies, today announced the opening of a new office and state-of-the-art Illumina Solutions Center in Bengaluru, India.\n\n \n \n \n \n \n \n\n \nIllumina's expansion comes after 16 years of working closely with the company's channel partner in India, Premas Life Sciences. Now with its own permanent facility, Illumina will continue to collaborate with Premas to grow the genomics market in India, recognized by the United Nations as the most populous country in the world with more than 1.4 billion people. Expanding access to genomics in this important market will help unlock opportunities for advancing health care and combating the effects of climate change in South Asia.\n\"Expanding Illumina's presence in India allows the company to collaborate and be part of a vibrant biotech ecosystem with skilled labor, strong research and development resources, and supportive government policies,\" said Gretchen Weightman, senior vice president, Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa. \"In our 25th anniversary year, it's a very exciting time to be growing our physical presence in India to drive access and the further adoption of genomics to transform human health, particularly in oncology and infectious disease.\"\nTuberculosis is one infectious disease of concern and a prevalent problem in India. Globally, nearly 500,000 new cases of TB are detected each year, and India accounts for nearly 30% of those cases. Illumina has supported TB surveillance over the last seven years in India through the FIND Seq&Treat project, which aims to increase uptake of next-generation sequencing (NGS) for affordable, scalable, and rapid TB drug-susceptibility testing.\nIllumina has also supported initiatives to increase access to sequencing capability in India; this includes philanthropic funding with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Rockefeller Foundation to support COVID-19 surveillance.\nIllumina employs over 30 people in India, in sales, operations, marketing, government relations, and human resources, and more hiring is expected as Illumina moves to scale operations there. The business is led by Abhishek Gupta, country manager. Gupta is responsible for achieving Illumina's commercial business objectives in India, spearheadi...