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Solutions that push your R&D further. Contract research with Genetwister is a deep dive into science with the joint forces of our teams.
Top-notch contract research in molecular breeding
As a trusted contract research partner in molecular breeding, we provide long-term R&D support that evolves with your needs. Genetwister prioritizes strategic collaborations that drive continuous innovation, offering precision breeding, bioinformatics, and advanced genomics services tailored to your goals.
Our approach focuses on developing tailored, sustainable bioinformatics solutions that drive innovation in crop quality and breeding efficiency.
Turning genetic data into actionable insights
Our expertise lies in extracting genetic data and transforming it into meaningful, actionable insights. Whether it’s high-throughput sequencing or data-driven breeding programs, we help companies unlock the full potential of their genetic material to improve yield, disease resistance, and other key traits.
Creating signature crops
We work closely with our clients to create signature crops that stand out in the market. By leveraging cutting-edge technologies and deep genetic analysis, we help companies develop crops that meet the specific needs of their breeding programs—faster and with greater precision than traditional methods.
Our solutions optimize breeding programs and accelerate crop innovation.
Our core services
Our core solutions cover the entire spectrum of molecular breeding, including:
High-Throughput Genotyping and Sequencing
Increasing efficiency and precision in DNA sequencing.
Advanced Bioinformatics
Extracting meaningful insights from complex genetic data.
Breeding Program Optimization
Tailored strategies to maximize crop potential.
Software Development for Genetic Analysis
Custom software tools to process and analyze data.
Meet your external R&D team
For over 25 years, Genetwister has been at the forefront of molecular breeding and bioinformatics. Our expertise and long-standing track record of success make us the trusted partner for agricultural, horticultural, and ornamental plant breeders. We work with four core teams.
Our four teams
The four expert teams at Genetwister that work collaboratively to turn genetic data into innovative crop solutions are:
The Bioinformatics team applies expertise in molecular biology, IT, and statistics to analyze genome data and support genetic marker development, gene discovery, and complex trait breeding. We focus on data visualization to help people improve crops.
Our work includes assembling high-quality reference genomes, variant discovery, and functional annotation, alongside specific studies like quantitative transcriptomics and haplotyping.
Genome Assembly
De novo genome assemblies provide high-quality, chromosome-level reference genomes that accelerate breeding programs. These assemblies reveal genome architecture, specific gene locations, and structural variants, enabling more accurate QTL analyses without the need for a physical map. High-quality reference genomes also improve Genomic Selection and support breeding programs by incorporating traits from wild germplasm, aiding in the development of commercial varieties with enhanced genetic diversity.
Marker Discovery
Marker discovery accelerates plant breeding by identifying molecular markers using next-generation sequencing (NGS) technologies. These markers, including SNPs and indels, are developed for both model organisms and non-model species without prior genomic data. They are applied in marker-assisted breeding for tasks like fingerprinting parental lines and discovering trait-specific markers.
All data is made accessible to customers through Genetwister’s proprietary software platform, CROPaware, ensuring seamless integration of molecular data into breeding programs.
Data Visualization
Clear and informative data visualisation is crucial for fast and easy interpretation as well as decision making. Visualizations of large datasets, such as millions of markers on a genome, and complex concepts, such as pangenomes, are tailored to breeding questions to support diverse research analyses from marker search to candidate gene discovery.
Haplotype Discovery
Haplotype discovery accelerates plant breeding by improving genotype-phenotype relationships through linked genetic variants. By identifying haplotypes, breeders gain valuable insights into genetically linked variants and pedigree reconstruction. This long-range information enhances the prediction of recombination, allowing for more precise selection of varieties. With advancements in sequencing technology, assembling and phasing genomes into haplotypes is now more economically feasible, reducing costs and improving the efficiency of breeding programs.
We supports breeding programs by developing marker-assisted tools and providing expert guidance on phenotyping design and data analysis. We conduct advanced genetic analysis to identify the best individuals based on their genomic and phenotypic traits.
We optimize methods like Genomic Selection and implement genome-wide association studies (GWAS). We also integrate high-throughput phenotyping techniques, visualize and apply genomic and phenotypic data to enhance breeding programs.
Experimental Design
Effective experimental design is crucial for successful breeding trials. We provide tailored recommendations based on the breeding program’s objectives, considering factors like population size, crossings, and phenotyping protocols. Our approach ensures that both phenotypic and genetic variation are well-captured, optimizing the design of multi-environment trials to achieve the best results.
Genomic Selection
Genomic selection (GS) accelerates genetic improvement by shortening breeding cycles and using whole-genome marker data combined with phenotype information. At Genetwister, we implement advanced breeding schemes that integrate GS, enabling breeders to select the best individuals based on genetic potential. This innovative approach helps breeders address the challenge of multiple markets and growing environments, while reducing the generation interval for faster results.
Association analysis
Association analysis identifies marker-trait associations that are crucial for developing breeding lines with favorable genetic traits. We employ advanced statistical models, including Bayesian approaches, to optimize association analysis by integrating multi-environment trials and time-series data. These methods allow us to uncover associations within germplasm collections characterized by extensive genetic markers, improving breeding outcomes and efficiency.
High throughput precision Phenotyping
High-throughput precision phenotyping increases the quality and consistency of phenotypic data, which is essential for genetic studies. By integrating automated phenotyping systems, Genetwister ensures repeatability and reliability in trait measurement. We also explore new methods to incorporate phenotypic data into genetic models, enhancing breeding programs and supporting better-informed decisions.
We develop quality cultivars using high-throughput sequencing and genotyping technologies. By staying on the cutting edge of advancements, we recommend and apply the most promising technologies.
A key focus is optimizing protocols for next-generation sequencing (NGS) platforms, improving DNA isolation and sequence preparation. We also enhance genotyping methods, increase throughput and turnaround times, support molecular breeding and Genomic Selection programs.
Long Read Sequencing
Long read sequencing enables the generation of high-quality, chromosome-level genome assemblies for complex plant genomes. It’s particularly effective in uncovering structural variants and resolving repeat sequences that are difficult to characterize with other methods. Using this advanced technology, we also determine haplotypes and obtain long-range genomic information, providing valuable insights for breeding programs.
Lab automation
As sample numbers continue to grow, lab automation becomes crucial for scaling up throughput. We utilize state-of-the-art liquid handling systems to efficiently process large volumes of samples, automating the most frequently used protocols. This allows for the streamlined preparation of samples for sequencing, ensuring both precision and speed in the lab.
High-throughput sequencing and genotyping
As genomic technologies evolve, the ability to analyze larger sample sizes and marker panels has become increasingly critical. With costs of sequencing rapidly decreasing, the Genomics Team at Genetwister leverages high-throughput sequencing and genotyping methods to accelerate discovery and innovation in molecular breeding.
Our focus is on developing and applying cost-effective, high-throughput genomic solutions that enhance precision and efficiency. By continuously scouting and evaluating the latest genotyping techniques, we ensure that our methods remain cutting-edge across a diverse range of crops, from diploids to polyploids.
Through our advanced sequencing platforms and innovative genotyping approaches, we help breeders pinpoint genomic regions of interest with greater accuracy, enabling the development of crops with improved traits like disease resistance and higher yield.
The Software Development team creates tools for genome data analysis, SNP discovery, and breeding data management. CROPaware integrates crop sequence data, while LEAFY identifies target genes for trait improvement.
We design scalable software in collaboration with bioinformaticians and ICT experts, ensuring efficiency as data volumes grow. Our team works together across the entire software development lifecycle, delivering powerful tools for breeders.
CROPaware
CROPaware is Genetwister’s powerful, web-based platform designed to manage and integrate diverse data formats for plant genomics and breeding. It enables breeders to analyze sequencing data, marker calling, genotypes, and annotations, helping them make informed decisions. With advanced features like genome-wide association analysis and variance comparison between samples, CROPaware ensures accurate and efficient crop development.
Leafy
Leafy is our lead discovery engine, connecting smart functional information about genes to genetic variants. Leafy is designed to identify target genes for trait improvement and driving innovation in crop enhancement through mutation breeding or genome editing.
Distributed Analysis Computing
We develop tools using distributed computing models like Spark and Hadoop to handle large-scale genomic data. These technologies enable efficient data processing, allowing us to manage and analyze vast datasets with speed and precision. By leveraging distributed computing, we optimize the performance of our bioinformatics tools, ensuring scalability as data volumes grow, and providing actionable insights for molecular breeding and genomic research.
Pangenomes
Pangenomes enable us to compare multiple genomes simultaneously, together with the variants in the germplasm. Both an efficient data structure and the basis for analysis of structural differences between plants, pangenomes are a future-proof way to make the best use of variation data for breeding.
More than the sum of all parts
At Genetwister, true innovation happens when our four core teams collaborate. By combining the strengths of bioinformatics, software development, genetics, and genomics, we create groundbreaking solutions for our clients.
This is what makes Genetwister truly unique and gives it our creative competitive edge.
“True innovation comes from cross-team collaboration”
Who is Genetwister?
Ready to revolutionize your R&D? Let’s work together to uncover new genetic possibilities.
