Agencourt Awards Genomic Services Grant
Agencourt recently created a $10,000 Genomic Services Grant offered on behalf of Team Eradicate in conjunction with the 24th Annual Pan-Massachusetts Challenge (PMC). The Pan-Mass Challenge is a yearly bicycle marathon across Massachusetts that raises over $100 million on behalf of the Dana Farber Cancer Institute and the Jimmy Fund in an effort to advance cancer research, treatment, and patient support.

The Pan-Mass Genomic Service Grant was awarded in December 2003 to Dr. Patricia Dahia, a researcher at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute performing oncology-related research. Dr. Dahia's proposal is entitled, "A Novel Familial Pheochromocytoma Susceptibility Locus: towards identification of the target gene." The goal of this study is to identify the gene(s) responsible for novel familial pheochromocytoma syndrome (FP). Pheochromocytoma is a rare tumor of the adrenal gland that can increase production of adrenaline and can cause life-threatening elevation in blood pressure. Identification of the FP gene will provide tools for early diagnosis of affected individuals and, as a result, guide therapeutic decisions. We hope that Agencourt's high-throughput sequencing capabilities can play a fundamental role in the identification of the susceptibility gene in this disorder. Dr. Dahia can use the $10,000 award for any of Agencourt's genomic services including:

• de novo sequencing
• Confirmational sequencing
• Resequencing & SNP discovery
• Protein interaction mapping
• Library construction and sequencing