Developing a cloud-based secure computation platform for genomics research
Name
1192561223-MIT.pdf
Size
1.79 MB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (MD5)
c2c1af95efcc7f6c451da9e7f5369581
Author(s)
Jain, Shreyan.
Advisor(s)
Bonnie Berger and Hyunghoon Cho.
Date Issued
2020
Publisher
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Abstract
Recent advances in genomic sequencing technologies and big data analytics present a golden opportunity for bioinformatics, making it possible to efficiently analyze hundreds of thousands of individual genomes and identify statistically significant genetic determinants of disease. However, most research institutes lack sufficient genomic data to detect fine-grained signals crucial for understanding complex human diseases, and data sharing is often impractical due to strict privacy protections. By leveraging a cryptographic technique known as secure multiparty computation (MPC), researchers can securely cooperate on large-scale genomic studies without revealing sensitive data to any collaborators. In this thesis, we propose a public cloud-based computational framework that implements MPC for an essential genomic analysis workflow known as genome-wide association study (GWAS). By productionizing secure GWAS tools in an easy-to-use interface that abstracts away the technical challenges involved with implementing and running a protocol on several independent, geographically separated machines, we hope to enable researchers around the world to launch meaningful genomic studies with minimal overhead. We hope such efforts will prove instrumental towards the broader aim of establishing a single general-purpose platform for secure genomics research.
Description
Thesis: M. Eng., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, May, 2020
Cataloged from the official PDF of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 87-88).
Subjects
Electrical Engineering and Computer Science.
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
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MIT theses may be protected by copyright. Please reuse MIT thesis content according to the MIT Libraries Permissions Policy, which is available through the URL provided.
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