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Roche Adopts EMC Centera For High-Content Screening Solution

Cellomics Inc announced that Roche, in Nutley, N.J., has successfully deployed the integrated solution of Cellomics Store, its enterprise class database for High Content Screening (HCS), with EMC Corp's Centera content addressed storage (CAS) system. The integration of Cellomics Store (part of Cellomics' High Content Informatics (HCi) platform) with EMC Centera CAS storage (a storage archive platform for digital fixed content) provides Roche with a best-in- class software and hardware solution for the management, storage, analysis and archival of cellular image data, enabling scientists to more effectively create, manage and analyze high content screening experiments, cellular image data, as well as discover relationships for potential targets, lead compounds and genes.

Images, which are the "raw" data of HCS, are critical content assets that are now secured via EMC's Centera system, providing a trusted, tamper-proof, scalable, and cost effective content store. Roche IT staff is now able to bring the value of Information Life Cycle Management (ILM) to the multiple terabytes of HCS information.

Commenting on the new systems, Leon Garfinkel, director of research IT at Roche, said, "We worked closely with Cellomics on the development and testing of their integration module for EMC's Centera system. As a result, we now have a solution for managing HCS data that is very scalable, cost effective and significantly decreases our HCS screening timelines. This benefits both the scientists and the IT teams."

"Roche has a very innovative and forward looking approach to HCS and as part of their planning asked us to assist in developing a solution to scale the management of HCS data, having recognized the advantages of the EMC Centera and Cellomics Store," said Mark Collins, senior product manager for HCi at Cellomics. "Our entire product team is very proud to have played a key role in Roche's IT strategy for HCS by delivering a solution that meets their needs."

Centera provides Roche with online access to all of its cellular image research records and securely stores the records for their entire retention period, from creation until ultimate deletion. Centera's unique self-healing and authentication features have prompted its industry-wide recognition as the first disk-based WORM (write once, read many) storage medium and is a compelling solution for storage environments that are required to comply with federal regulations including GxP, FDA 21 CFR Part 11, HIPAA and SarbanesOxley.