Author: Doug Dollemore
Joshua Bonkowsky, MD, professor of pediatrics at U of U Health and director of Primary Children’s Center for Personalized Medicine. Photo Credit: Charlie Ehlert
University of Utah Health researchers are participating in an effort to produce the world’s largest DNA mapping effort of children and their families.
HerediGene: Children’s Study will involve the voluntary collection of 50,000 DNA samples from infants, youngsters, and adolescents as well as their parents and siblings at Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital. The goal of this comprehensive population study is to identify the genetic causes of disease in children, based on their unique DNA, and find new ways to potentially treat or cure them.
The study is being conducted by Intermountain Precision Genomics. Information from the study will be used to inform researchers at the Primary Children’s Center for Personalized Medicine, a collaboration between Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital, Intermountain Precision Genomics, and pediatric specialists at U of U Health.
“The HerediGene study is a truly transformative opportunity,” says Joshua Bonkowsky, MD, professor of pediatrics at U of U Health and director of Primary Children’s Center for Personalized Medicine. “Until now, understanding disease, or trying to treat it, has been limited. With this study, we can remove the fog that has blocked our view.”
For more information, visit intermountainhealthcare.org/heredigene.