 |
|
|
 News Around the Republic of Mexico | July 2005 
Mexico Seeks Genetic Map Of Its Citizenry
 Theresa Braine - Associated Press
| | Besides mapping genes, the Genomic Medicine institute and Applied Biosystems will launch a pilot project looking for genetically based drugs specific to Latin Americans and those of Latin American descent. |
Mexico City - The Mexican government and private companies launched a project to map the genes of Mexicans, in hopes of developing treatments for health problems such as diabetes, asthma and hypertension.
Mexico's National Institute of Genomic Medicine will work on the project with Foster City-based Applied Biosystems Group, part of Applera, and IBM's Healthcare and Life Sciences division.
The Mexican population is unique because of its mixture of more than 60 Meso-American native groups with Spanish blood, the center's director, Gerardo Jimenez Sanchez, said in a statement.
Based on the Human Genome Project, the effort is the largest study of Latin American genes and could usher in a new medical era for the region, authorities said.
The Human Genome Project, completed in 2003, was a 13-year project coordinated by the U.S. Department of Energy and the National Institutes of Health to identify all the approximately 20,000-25,000 genes in human DNA.
The research could lead to medications designed for specific individuals and the health problems they face, said Mexican Health Secretary Julio Frenk. He said the research could help doctors shift medical science "from one of diagnosis and treatment to one of foreseeing and preventing."
Frenk spoke at a ceremony at the country's Genomic Medicine institute, which was established to research ways to improve health care by using recently mapped genetic information.
Tony L. White, CEO of Applera, said this type of genetic research presages a new way of viewing disease.
"If we're right, the therapies being introduced 50 years from now will only work in certain genotypes," he said. "This is what's going to turn medicine from an empirical science, where you just kind of guess what's wrong with someone based on symptoms, to a fact-based science where we understand the molecular basis of the disease at the individual level or the gene level, and then you work back from there for a cure."
There are also potential benefits for Americans of Mexican origin, noted Ana Kapor of Applied Biosystems, chosen for its technological ability and its experience in DNA analysis, according to Sanchez.
"More than one in eight people in the United States are of Hispanic origin, most of whom originated from Mexico," Kapor said. "The hope is to characterize the genetic variation of the Mexican people and determine how drugs respond to them."
"The ultimate goal of what is called 'race-based medicine' is to develop new treatments for common diseases that target these genetic differences," she said.
Frenk said similar research is already under way in Africa, Japan, Europe and the United States, adding, "it's fundamental that we not arrive late at the table of history."
Besides mapping genes, the Genomic Medicine institute and Applied Biosystems will launch a pilot project looking for genetically based drugs specific to Latin Americans and those of Latin American descent. |
| |
|
Vallarta Weddings
Tell a Friend
Site Map
Print this Page
Email Us