The National Genome Research Network Announces the Launch of one of the Worlds Largest Studies to Discover Genetic Causes of 25 Diseases in Germany
Germanys National Genome Research Network (NGFN) announced today their plan to conduct one of the Worlds largest disease genetic research projects to date, which will investigate genetic variations that trigger complex diseases. Scientists will genotype up to 25 000 patients and controls using both Affymetrix and Illumina genotyping technologies to better understand the underlying causes of 25 diseases, including several civilisation disorders, epilepsy, Parkinsons disease, Alzheimers disease, heart diseases, and malaria.
Researchers will compare patients data with the data of healthy controls to identify genetic variations and differences associated with the diseases.
Each individual participant of this study will be analyzed with regard to several hundred thousand genetic details, said Professor Max Baur from the university of Bonn. We have the possibility to receive more than 20 billion individual data in the scope of one huge experiment. This is the first step into a new world of genetics, added Professor Peter Nürnberg, the coordinator of Germanys National Genotyping Platform.
The NGFN will use the Affymetrix platform to genotype more than 17 000 individuals. Another 8 000 people will be analyzed using Illuminas BeadArray technology. The arrays from Affymetrix (Genome-Wide Human SNP Array 5.0 today and 6.0 when it becomes available) and Illumina (HumanCNV370-Duo, HumanHap300-Duo, and HumanHap550) will help detect a broad spectrum of genetic variations and analyze the relationships between genetics and health across the entire human genome. Both technologies allow the detection of more than 500 000 variations in individual gene letters (SNPs) and can identify additional genetic differences, including gene copy number variations. Recent research results have shown that the number of copies of some genes varies considerably from individual to individual and that this kind of genetic variation influences both biological function and disease development.
With this large-scale project, we hope to encourage the launch of further projects of this kind, said Professor Stefan Schreiber of the University of Kiel. Other projects, like the Wellcome Trust Case Control Consortium in the UK, have already taken first steps toward a systematic elucidation of the genetic causes of disease. With our initiative we go a step further: Our aim is to discover how similar diseases are linked in order to identify genes related to multiple diseases. The ability to address large sample cohorts such as these is crucial to understanding complex genetics.
Results of the studies will be ultimately accessible to both researchers from academia and the pharmaceutical industry. All investigations will comply with strict data protection guidelines and only be carried out with the written consent of the study participants and under approval of the respective ethics committees.
We are constantly pushing the envelope with our product portfolio to enable the power of genetic studies to be realized in larger and larger sample cohorts, said Kevin King, President of Life Sciences Business and Executive Vice President at Affymetrix. The NGFN includes many of the worlds premier genetic research institutions and this commitment to use the latest Affymetrix SNP 5.0 and 6.0 Arrays to genotype more than 17,000 samples further validates our strategy.
Were excited to have been selected by the German National Genome Research Network to participate in one of the worlds largest genetic research projects to date, said Jay Flatley, Illuminas Chief Executive Officer. Within the last year the HumanHap300-Duo and HumanHap550 BeadChips, both to be used in this study, have been used to rapidly identify variants linked to the development of complex conditions including inflammatory bowel disease, Parkinsons disease, and Lou Gehrigs disease in timeframes not typically experienced by researchers.
The NGFN is a large scale biomedical program initiated in 2001 by the German Federal Ministry for Education and Research (BMBF). The research activity of the NGFN focuses on investigating genetic causes of common diseases. Both Affymetrix and Illumina develop tools for the analysis of genetic variation and function.
Disease areas that will be studied in this NGFN genetic research project include anorexia, adipositas, epilepsy, bipolar disease, schizophrenia, clinical depression, Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, alcohol addiction, inflammatory bowel disease, atopic eczema, psoriasis, sarcoidosis, coronary heart disease, left ventricular hypertrophy, diastolic myocardial insufficiency, dilatative cardiomyopathy, several forms of malaria and tuberculosis. Furthermore the NGFN scientists want to reveal the genetic causes of longevity in order to understand the principles of the aging process and to find new approaches for the treatment of age-related diseases.
Further information about the National Genome Research Network and about the companies Affymetrix and Illumina, please see the websites www.ngfn.de, www.affymetrix.com and www.illumina.com.
Media Contacts:
National Genome Research Network
Prof. Dr. med. Stefan Schreiber
Universitätsklinikum Schleswig-Holstein, Campus Kiel
Schittenhelmstraße 12, 24105 Kiel
Tel.: +49 431 597-2350
E-mail: s.schreiber@mucosa.de
Affymetrix Inc.
Andrew Noble
Senior Manager, Corporate Communications
Tel.: +1 408 731-5571
E-mail: andrew_noble@affymetrix.com
Illumina, Inc.
Maurissa L. Bornstein
Public Relations Manager
Tel.: + 1 858-332-4055
E-mail: mbornstein@illumina.com
Projektmanagement NGFN
Projektträger im DLR
+49 228 3821-335
E-Mail: pm-ngfn@dlr.de
Source: NGFN
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