NEW YORK – Contract research services firm Psomagen said Monday that it will work with the Global Parkinson's Genetics Program (GP2) to sequence the genomes of a global research cohort of 80,000 Parkinson's disease patients and other participants.
Over the next two-and-a-half to three years, the company, formerly called Macrogen, will perform whole-genome sequencing on GP2 samples using Illumina's NovaSeq X Plus at its CLIA-certified, CAP-accredited, and ISO-certified laboratory in Rockville, Maryland.
Launched in 2019, GP2 aims to genotype over 150,000 individuals. It is supported by the Aligning Science Across Parkinson's initiative, managed by the Coalition for Aligning Science and implemented by the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research.
The program consists of 80 member organizations and has assembled over 160 cohorts from around the globe. In particular, GP2 aims to include groups traditionally underrepresented in genetics research to diversify its understanding of Parkinson's.
"With our nearly 20 years of services experience, the key to our customers' success has been built on trust of our customers through continued collaborations like our work with the GP2 program," Matt Kramer, VP of sales and marketing at Psomagen, said in a statement.
Nicole Berry, head of the Americas region at Illumina, added that "the global cohort built by GP2 will serve to improve the diversity of genomic data that will ultimately inform improved precision therapies for more people with [Parkinson's disease] around the world."