Perlegen Sciences Awarded Contract to Identify Genetic Variation in Laboratory Mouse Strains by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
Perlegen Sciences, Inc. announced today that it has been awarded a $13.2 million contract by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) to identify sequence variation in inbred mouse strains. Perlegen will use Affymetrix whole-wafer, high density, oligonucleotide array technology to analyze 15 mouse strains to identify single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and other genetic differences between these strains. The mouse genome is approximately 2.4 billion bases long.
For more than 100 years researchers from a variety of scientific disciplines have worked with the mouse as the preferred experimental organism for biomedical research. The biology and physiology shared between mice and humans make the mouse an outstanding animal model for the study of the genetic mechanisms underlying human disease. The array-based whole genome variation study of 15 inbred mouse strains is an exciting development for the genomics field. The sequence and variation data that will result from the project will have an enormous impact on mouse genetics research and corresponding human genetics research. This will have long-term benefits for understanding the molecular basis of human diseases such as cancer, obesity, hypertension, diabetes, asthma, neurological disorders, and aging.
“This new initiative has attracted world-wide interest and generated a lot of enthusiasm within the research community,” said Kenneth Olden, PhD, Director of NIEHS. “Because the mouse strains will be sequenced in parallel, inter-strain comparison will begin right away, and entire genomes will be complete within the next two years. This initiative will launch the National Institute of Environmental Health Science’s Center for Rodent Genetics and is part of the Institute’s ongoing efforts to understand the basis for differences in response to drugs and other environmental factors.”
The identification of sequence variation will lead to the discovery of genetic loci involved in complex traits in mice and environmental triggers of disease. This, in turn, is likely to provide insights into complex human diseases. “We are very pleased to have been selected by the NIEHS to perform this research,” stated Brad Margus, CEO of Perlegen. “This contract provides Perlegen with another avenue — in addition to human genetic studies — to contribute to the understanding of human health.”
As the sequence data is generated, it will be made freely available to the public through GenBank. “We hope that the sequence data generated during this study will be a valuable resource for scientists using mice to identify regions of the genome associated with complex traits, including the susceptibility to develop certain diseases and drug toxicity responses,” stated Kelly Frazer, Ph.D., Vice President of Genomics at Perlegen and Principal Investigator of this study. Phylogenetic and haplotype analyses conducted at Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research in Cambridge, MA, will also be made publicly available. “We are very excited to continue our collaboration with Perlegen in mouse genomics,” said Mark Daly, a Whitehead Fellow and an Associate Member of the recently-formed Broad Institute. Dr. Daly, who will be collaborating with Perlegen on this study, noted that “the knowledge and resources emerging from this work will have a big impact on biomedical research.”
The DNA for the mouse strains will be provided by Mouse DNA Resources at The Jackson Laboratory. “This is an exciting project that will move the field of human medicine forward through greater understanding of the genetics of the laboratory mouse, the most important animal model in research today,” stated Molly Bogue, PhD, Director of the Mouse Phenome Project at The Jackson Laboratory.
During 2001 and 2002, Perlegen used the same approach to successfully identify over 1.5 million SNPs distributed throughout the human genome. Perlegen is currently using these SNPs to perform whole genome association studies to determine the genetic factors responsible for complex traits such as disease and differential drug response.
The $13.2 million in funding from NIEHS will cover approximately 55% of the total costs associated with this project. The remainder of the funding, approximately $10.8 million, will be provided by non-governmental sources.
About Perlegen Sciences
Perlegen Sciences, Inc. is working to provide safe and effective medicines to the world. The company quickly and cost effectively analyzes more than one million genetic variations in DNA samples obtained from clinical trial participants. This information is used to explain and predict the efficacy and adverse effect profiles of prescription drugs. Perlegen also applies this expertise to discovering genetic variants associated with disease for potential new therapeutics and diagnostics. For years, scientists and drug manufacturers have been eager to comprehensively examine entire genomes; through Perlegen, this is now possible. Perlegen is able to bring drugs to the market wherein clinical development could have been otherwise discontinued.
Based in Mountain View, California, Perlegen was formed in late 2000 as a spin-off from Affymetrix, Inc. (Nasdaq:AFFX). For more information about the company and its technologies, visit Perlegen’s website at www.perlegen.com . Perlegen Sciences, Perlegen, and the Perlegen logo are trademarks of Perlegen Sciences, Inc.
