A St. John's-based biotech company that wants to do genetic research in Newfoundland and Labrador is celebrating the approval of a research proposal — even though the company had to leave its home province to get the green light.

Sequence Bio applied twice to do genetic research projects in Newfoundland and Labrador but both times its proposals were rejected by the province's Health Research Ethics Authority.

We were almost surprised ourselves when we had conditional approval with in 30 days. - Chris Gardner

Now the company, founded in 2013, has received approval to carry out what it's calling the New Brunswick Genome Project.

"The experience in New Brunswick has actually been so earth-shatteringly different," said Sequence Bio CEO Chris Gardner.

"We were almost surprised ourselves when we had conditional approval within 30 days but we are glad we have gone through it. It has been extremely validating. This is all we've been trying to do since the beginning."

Sequence Bio's press release says it hopes 'to enable better health care and improve drug discovery by using big data and computational approaches to find better, safer treatments.' (CBC)

SequenceBio ​says it will work with three Moncton doctors for the project. SequenceBio ​says it will work with three Moncton doctors for the project.

The company hopes to gain a better understanding of New Brunswick's genetic makeup by studying the DNA of 2,500 volunteers. Those volunteers will be asked to give a saliva sample, fill out a questionnaire, provide contact information, and grant access to their medical records.

The ultimate goal is to understand, treat, and prevent the diseases that affect people in New Brunswick, says a company press release.

Not giving up on Newfoundland and Labrador

Sequence Bio says it will spend several million dollars on its New Brunswick project but does want to submit more research proposals — and spend millions more — in Newfoundland and Labrador.

It would be investments in the tens of millions of dollars and the creation of dozens and dozens of high-paying scientific jobs. - Chris Gardner

"Our hopes are that in a functioning regulatory environment no projects would be stalled out and over the course of the next number of years we could have upwards of 10 different studies looking at the various diseases that impact us most," said Gardner.

"It would be investments in the tens of millions of dollars and the creation of dozens and dozens of high-paying scientific jobs. We're a Newfoundland and Labrador-based company and we really do want to bring this kind of work back home."

Still in court in Newfoundland and Labrador

Earlier this year, Sequence Bio went to Newfoundland and Labrador Supreme Court in an effort to get a response for a research proposal it had submitted to the province's Health Research Ethics Authority for approval.

By the time it had filed a court application last March, the company had already waited more than 200 days for a decision from the authority. A day after the company filed the application, the authority informed Sequence Bio that its Newfoundland genome research proposals had been rejected. An early Sequence Bio colorectal cancer research proposal was also rejected by the authority before the company filed its court application.

The application was then changed. Sequence Bio is now asking a judge to rule that the ethics authority must make a decision no more than 30 days after receiving a research proposal.

The case is scheduled to return to court in mid-December.

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