Gene sequencing and analysis could be dramatically accelerated by a Cambridge bioinformatics specialist using cloud computing technology.

It says the approach slashes the time it takes to store the huge amount of data produced when individual genes are sequenced and analysed.

The process currently takes up to three months – but Eagle’s scientists and collaborators say the new technique could produce results in about a week.

Eagle is conducting the research with The University of Manchester and Cytocell Ltd with assistance from NGRL – based at the Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust – and the NIHR Manchester Biomedical Research Centre. The £500k project is part-funded by the Technology Strategy Board.

Access to the information analysed and stored by the cloud will enable medical researchers developing and testing new treatments to compare large amounts of information and find common genetic links.

The technology will also help clinicians to look at an individual patient’s genetic makeup to aid diagnosis and ongoing treatment.

Rather than simply testing a patient for one suspected condition, using the cloud technology could allow clinicians to test for a much broader range of complaints, says Eagle.

Currently the NHS IT systems do not have the resources to cope with the huge demands required. The cloud system can be accessed from a separate site, away from hospitals, freeing up space.

Abel Ureta-Vidal, CEO of Eagle Genomics, said: “Thanks to funding from the Technology Strategy Board, this project is looking at ways in which genetic data can be securely and confidentially stored, accessed and analysed only by approved users.”

The project started in July and is on target for completion of a fully functional system with an initial selection of analyses available by December 2012.