The promise of genomics is to understand human biology, improve health and well being and better treat disease. While the genome reflects all the DNA in our cells, much of the work to date has focused on a subset of that DNA, the exome. This is the part of the genome that represents the genes that code for the proteins, fats and carbohydrates that make up our cells, organs and body. The exome constitutes only 2% of the genome, the rest having regulatory and other roles that are very poorly, or not at all understood at this time.
There remains an enormous gap in our understanding of the cell and what happens to it that leads to disease.
Bringing diversity is a key pillar to solve this puzzle. Along with this diversity, it is equally important to get information about the population’s disease traits. That is, drug researchers require genomic data from curated disease cohorts, with deep phenotyping and the biorepository itself for further context-dependent investigations. This is what Anuva’s Genomic Bio/Data Bank delivers to them!
Curated disease cohorts + Deeply phenotyped + Diverse Asian populations + Genomic sequence data + Biorepository = Genomic Bio/Data Bank
The genome is complex: the number of possible variations is greater than the estimated number of atoms in the universe and that does not even take account of the multiplicity of environmental, epigenetic, and other factors that impact the function of genes and other genetic elements within the genome. Yet, the problem is surmountable.
The Genomic Bio/Data Bank paradigm enables researchers to identify differences in disease susceptibility as well as the consequences of treatments between different peoples and populations, allowing a shortcut past the Gordian complexity of permutations.
Furthermore, as we tease out the pathways highlighted by this diversity, the biological threads that lead away from health towards disease will be laid bare. This will open up a myriad of treatment opportunities.
Thus, Anuva’s Bio/Data Bank paradigm creates new knowledge that helps drug researchers uncover root causes of diseases, find treatment targets and also their effect on individuals.