Dr Ziad Al Bkhetan1, Dr Johan Ranar Ove Gustafsson1, Dr Sophie Mazard2, Dr Mabel Lum2, Sarah Richmond2, Dr Rhys Francis1, Dr Steven Manos1
1Australian Biocommons, North Melbourne, Australia, 2Bioplatforms Australia, , Australia
The production of reference datasets and downstream data products in life sciences is a key activity of national consortia including the Genomics of Australian Plants (GAP), Australian Amphibian and Reptile Genomics (AusARG) and Zero Childhood Cancer (ZERO).
Use of computing to produce data assets can be characterised in a number of ways: It is episodic in nature over multi-year timeframes; is driven by data availability as samples become available; the software is often imported, complex and not optimised for HPC; and diverse expertise and effective coordination are needed. These characteristics are not readily supported by schemes such as NCMAS.
The ABLeS program was established in April 2021 in partnership with Bioplatforms Australia, NCI and Pawsey to support these characteristics and accelerate the production of data assets. It targets established communities that are focused on a common research theme, create data for reuse, and have the ability to plan and prioritise species for study. Support includes access to infrastructure, a shared repository of tools and workflows, as well as specialist expertise.
Various communities have been on-boarded into the program. The ABLeS team coordinates with bioinformaticians and NCI specialists to install and optimise required tools and workflows, and support the ongoing use of the facility.
The ABLeS program is proving highly effective for communities who are otherwise unable to access computing, with communities aligning research programs with guaranteed compute over multi-year timeframes. The outcomes of the program are numerous and diverse: several new data assets, optimised tools and pipelines, and research papers.
Biography:
Ziad joined the Australian Biocommons as bioinformatics application specialist in 2022. He completed his PhD at the University of Melbourne in 2021 in computer science and bioinformatics. His experience involves bioinformatics, machine learning, and software engineering.