CASE HISTORIES

Cambridge Online’s High Performance Computing solutions are the engine for the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute.

Long term relationship continues to support the growth in Genomic Research using powerful HP systems.

In the 1990s, a whole new arena of medical research opened up as improved experimental techniques for reading parts of DNA were allied to more powerful computers to analyse genomes using sophisticated pattern matching. It was now possible to understand at the most basic, genetic level, what controlled a particular human function. The implications of this are huge for healthcare, with the development of targeted new approaches to prevention and treatment of disease.

The Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute is dedicated to analysing and understanding genomes, and is based on a campus just South of Cambridge. Since 1994 Cambridge Online has worked with the Sanger Institute to provide the backbone of their computing infrastructure, earning their respect working on small early projects, and now delivering multi-million pound High Performance Computing systems. The system has grown from only 10s of processors in 1994, to more than 2000 processors in year 2003.

The Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, world leading genomic center
Formerly the Sanger Centre, the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute is named after Fred Sanger the double Nobel Prize winning, Cambridge biochemist.

The Sanger Institute is best known for its work on the Human Genome Project, where it was responsible for sequencing almost one-third (850 million base-pairs) of the human genome. This groundbreaking work was powered by Cambridge Online designed and supplied HP AlphaServer systems, and continues today with further analysis and the study of mutations that lead to illnesses such as cancer.

Similar techniques are also applied to the genomes of disease-causing organisms. The teams working on pathogens produce a DNA sequence and then use sophisticated analysis to identify genes and assign them a function. By studying organisms that cause diseases such as malaria, sleeping sickness, typhoid and tuberculosis, it will be possible to identify potential targets for new drugs or vaccines.

Cambridge Online’s continuing support
The consultative approach that Cambridge Online has taken when working with the Sanger Institute has been a major contributor to the success of the IT projects. A typical new project has requirements for storage and compute power, but it is not just a matter of deploying a replica of a previous system. Cambridge Online uses the experience gained with earlier deployments, together with new technology advances and the specific project needs, to advise on the design of the proposed computing solution. During 2002, Cambridge Online supplied a HP AlphaServer Supercomputer valued at more than

£ 15 million (which included 38 ES45, four ES40, three DS20 and one 32-cpu GS320 system) and 12 of the latest generation StorageWorks virtual storage arrays, thus more than doubling their compute power and storage capacity.

With the production of a large body of genome sequence information, the successful storage, management and retrieval of this data has become paramount. In 1997, Cambridge Online ensured high-availability of the storage by deploying a UNIX cluster, using HP StorageWorks linked with shared SCSI. Cambridge Online has been able to advise the Sanger Institute when new technology is proven for production environments, and consequently they have now upgraded to a fibre channel based SAN (Storage Area Network). Before purchase the consulting process balanced the needs of resilience and performance with an economic price.

On site service
Rapid growth of research at the Sanger Institute has required Cambridge Online to respond with a variety of services to support the evolution of the computing environment.

The new HP AlphaServer Supercomputer was ‘squeezed’ in temporary accommodation in early 2002 until a new facility was completed. Cambridge Online initially designed an optimum configuration for the restricted space, and then in November 2002 worked with the Institute to move the equipment to the new Data Centre, while providing continuing access for the scientists to production systems.

Keith Allen, Technology Consultant at Cambridge Online explained “At times we worked at evenings and weekends to minimize disruption. The move was more than a straight shift of cabinets, as the new larger machine room allowed us to re-configure systems in additional racking for future planned expansion.”

Phil Butcher, Head of Systems at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, said: "Our mission is to understand genomes -- the DNA code that underlies life, and directs development from a single-cell egg to a fully formed adult. Our compute resources must be similarly adaptable and flexible and capable of development. These new sciences are organic, new information levels are many-fold more complex and we are constantly seeking answers to ever more difficult questions involving more variables.

" Each stage in our quest to bring benefit from the publicly available genome sequences is a huge challenge to us and our sponsors the Wellcome Trust. But we are committed to putting into the hands of biomedical researchers the tools they need."

Cambridge Online has a close working relationship with HP (Hewlett-Packard), the manufacturer of the systems deployed at the Sanger Institute, and has been the gateway to HP services to ensure continued running (from break-fix through to pro-active Business Critical consulting).

The Future
The current Data Centre housing the HP AlphaServer Supercomputer is still only a temporary facility, as within 3 years a permanent extension to the Genome Campus will house the equipment. This new development will bring industry and academic scientists together to allow data emerging from the Human Genome Project to be translated into practical health benefits.

Cambridge Online continues its consulting dialogue with the Sanger Institute to help prepare their IT infrastructure for an exciting future at the forefront of post-genomics research.

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