ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT GENOMEPATRI

I contacted Map my genome company for a DNA Test and got this reply
Genomepatri (TM) - Get a Reality Check!‏
Greetings from mapmygenome.in . Having been in the genomics industry for over 12 years working with the leading Pharma and Biotech industry as Ocimum Biosolutions, we felt that there was a need for the consumer to benefit from the rapid evolution and expansion of the genomics industry. About 2 years ago, we started to build a database and provide services which can impact healthcare in India greatly. The vision of mapmygenome.in is "Better Health for Indians using Technology" and we are excited to tell you about the first prognostic test that we have launched a few months ago that we call "Genomepatri™. 

Genomepatri™ in simple terms is a scientifically validated horoscope for health.   "Genomepatri™" provides essential information about your genetic profile. Knowledge about oneself will allow individuals like you to really take control of their health and take appropriate measures towards a healthy life. It is an investment for a lifetime and we will continue to provide you updates as science gets more knowledge on other diseases. 

With the Genomepatri™ test as we call it, you can get life saving information about your potential health risks well in advance so you can personalize your lifestyle to manage your health risks better.  Along with your psyche and lifestyle, your genetics plays a crucial role in your overall health. We decode your DNA and tell you about genetic health risks you could have possibly inherited from your parents or predecessors or have accumulated due to your life style or other influencing factors.

  

Essentially the Genomepatri™ test gives you power to understand and take action regarding the following

·         Genetic Predisposition: Will help you discover if you are genetically predisposed to one or several diseases. 

·         Traits: Can help you learn if you have genetic traits which can influence a medical outcome or health and we health and well being in general

·         Drug response: Help you discover your response to drugs, optimum drug dosage and sensitivity to certain formulations

This soon to be essential map of your genetic profile not only gives you a glimpse into your future that you can control and also  can assist a clinician in advising lifestyle changes that will help lower the risk or slow the progression of diseases, and suggesting other tests or recommending personalized treatments.

MAP MY GENOME: In news
Checking out horoscopes and kundlis are passé, you want to know your future? Just spit.

This is Genomepatri(TM), a comprehensive test that offers a composite picture of your genetic make-up and highlights the diseases you might be predisposed to - by testing just 10 ml of your spittle.

Anu Acharya - a graduate from IIT Kharagpur who also holds a degree in MSc in Physics and MIS, University of Illinois - was the first "guinea pig" of this futuristic test. She says, "I had to try it myself before throwing it open to public."

Anu founded Genomepatri with her husband Subhash Lingareddy two years ago as part of their company, Mapmygenome; they also own the multinational biotechnology product development company Ocimum Biosolutions, headquartered in Hitech city.

Says the 40-plus entrepreneur, "My family has a history of diabetes. So I wasn't surprised when the tests showed up the same. I was predisposed to it by 41 per cent, much higher than the Indian average of 20 per cent. I am also susceptible to three to four other diseases."

For the past one month, Anu has been waking early, running obsessively and is trying to be stress-free. "That is what this test essentially aims to do. Yes, many people are anxious of trying it as they don't know what the future has in store for them. But if you take it positively, you can modify your lifestyle and reduce the extent of the disease," says Anu.

While the official launch is in April, the collection kit, was introduced in the market this January and has had 250 takers, beginning with Delhi and Mumbai before returning to the city. Its next stop is Kolkata. "For something that costs Rs 25,000, it's quite a good response," shares Anu.

Explaining why the test is costly, Anu says, "We use a chip that has 2.2 million snps (mutations) stored on it. We have a database of genetic traits of millions of Indians. We need to process 96 samples at a time. In order to simplify the logistics, we ship the packet and receive it via courier services. This leads to this cost. It will come down as the demand increases." She adds, "It's a lifelong investment as we will create accounts for our clients on our website and update them of diseases that we identify in the future."

Genomepatri's services do not end here. Anu also provides genetic counsellors, a panel of doctors one can visit for diagnosis and treatment.

She has partnered with Mydocadvisor, which has a network of 10,000 doctors in 7-8 Indian cities.

While Subhash has moved back to Ocimum Biosolutions, Anu has taken over the venture. "The first ones to try Genomepatri were intellectually curious people who wanted to try out the new technology. The second bracket was fitness-freaks. The third comprised people with chronic diseases. But I wish to target the youth."

While they are not the first to venture into personal genomics, they are certainly the first in India to identify more than 25 diseases. "A Chennai-based firm rolled out something similar. But they only identify diabetes and cardio-vascular diseases. We identify 25 and will add more in future."

Educating Physicians About Genomics: Are We Doing Enough?

Originally posted: Medscape

A patient shows the physician her annotated genome information on a handheld device. Or a physician may already have the patient's DNA in a file-cabinet-sized instrument from a "human genome interpretation company," whose software identifies gene variant patterns that might inform a diagnosis or treatment plan.

These 2 gadgets and their capabilities already exist, and by the time today's medical students are practicing, seeking interpretation of sequences of A, C, T, and G may be if not routine, at least not uncommon.


Healthcare consumers are increasingly savvy regarding genetic technology. "A patient can spit in a tube and send it to a variety of companies and get information on genetic markers that predict risks for common diseases," said Reed Pyeritz, MD, PhD, Professor of Medicine at the Perelman Center for Advanced Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia.

"Patients are clamoring to know whether sequencing their DNA can shed light on their condition. Every physician of the future will have to know how to respond to this, and it is essential that they receive some training in this area," added Michael Snyder, PhD, Chair of the Department of Genetics at Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, and Director of the Stanford Center for Genomics and Personalized Medicine.

The types of information coming from direct-to-consumer companies don't correspond to the single-gene (Mendelian) cases and examples that are still entrenched in medical school curricula. But several new programs are confronting the disconnect between what patients want to know and what physicians can tell them about the human genome.

Personal Genomics Companies in INDIA

MERA GENOME
meragenome.com Organisation working towards personal Genomics and Participatory Research in India

MAP MY GENOMEMapmygenome.in personal genomics company focused on the Indian genome

GENKNOWMICS

genknowmics.org/geknowmics.blgospot.com
A personal Genomics company. We decode your code.
Hyderabad based Genomics(geKNOWmics) company uses microarray technology to analyze SNP's.

Cost of sequencing an individual's genome

he cost of sequencing a human genome is dropping rapidly, due to the continual development of new, faster, cheaper DNA sequencing technologies such as "next generation DNA sequencing".
The National Human Genome Research Institute, part of the U.S. National Institutes of Health, has set a target to be able to sequence a human-sized genome for US$100,000 by 2009 and US$1,000 by 2014.
There are 6 billion base pairs in the diploid human genome. Statistical analysis reveals that a coverage of approximately ten times is required to get coverage of both alleles in 90% human genome from 25 base-pair reads with shotgun sequencing. This means a total of 60 billion base pairs that must be sequenced. An Applied Biosystems SOLiD, Illumina or Helicos sequencing machine can sequence 2 to 10 billion base pairs in each $8,000 to $18,000 run. The purchase cost, personnel costs and data processing costs must also be taken into account. Sequencing a human genome cost approximately $300,000 in 2008.
In 2009, Complete Genomics of Mountain View announced that it would provide full genome sequencing for $5,000, from June 2009. This will only be available to institutions, not individuals.
Given the ethical concerns about presymptomatic genetic testing of minors, it is likely that personal genomics will first be applied to adults who can provide consent to undergo such testing.
In June 2009, Illumina announced the launch of its own Personal Full Genome Sequencing Service at a depth of 30X for $48,000 per genome. Only one year later, in 2010, they cut the price 60% to $19,500. Prices are expected to drop further over the next few years through economies of scale and increased competition.
Knome's whole genome sequencing approach aims, instead, to read every site in the whole euchromatic portion of a person's genome (roughly 3 billion sites). While significantly more expensive than SNP chip-based genotyping, this approach yields significantly more data, identifying both novel (never-before-seen) and known sequence variants, some of which may be particularly relevant in efforts to understand personal health, as well as ancestry.

NEW ERA OF MEDICINE PREDICTIVE MEDICINE

Predictive medicine is the use of the information produced by personal genomics techniques when deciding what medical treatments are appropriate for a particular individual. Precision medicine is focused on "a new taxonomy of human disease based on molecular biology"
Examples of the use of predictive and precision medicine include inherited medical genomics, cancer genomics and pharmacogenomics. In pharmacogenomics genetic information can be used to select the most appropriate drug to prescribe to a patient. The drug should be chosen to maximize the probability of obtaining the desired result in the patient and minimize the probability that the patient will experience side effects. Genetic information may allow physicians to tailor therapy to a given patient, in order to increase drug efficacy and minimize side effects. As of Oct 2012 there are 167 examples of drug gene pairs for which this information is currently useful in clinical practice and this number has been growing rapidly.
Disease risk may be calculated based on genetic markers and genome-wide association studies for common medical conditions, which are multifactorial and include environmental components in the assessment. Diseases which are individually rare (less than one in 200,000 people affected) are nevertheless collectively common (affecting roughly 8-10% of the US population). Over 2500 of these diseases (including a few more common ones) have predictive genetics of sufficiently high clinical impact that they are recommended as medical genetic tests available for single genes (and in whole genome sequencing) and growing at about 200 new genetic diseases per year.

What is Personal Genomics

Personal genomics is the branch of genomics concerned with the sequencing and analysis of the genome of an individual. The genotyping stage employs different techniques, including single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) analysis chips (typically 0.02% of the genome), or partial or full genome sequencing. Once the genotypes are known, the individual's genotype can be compared with the published literature to determine likelihood of trait expression and disease risk.
Automated sequencers have increased the speed and reduced the cost of sequencing, making it possible to offer genetic testing to consumers.