NEW YORK (GenomeWeb) – MyoKardia said today that it is collaborating with 23andMe to create a patient community to advance research into hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), a progressive and frequently debilitating disease characterized by excessive contractility of the heart.
Under the terms of the partnership, the companies will create a patient community where 23andMe customers can access regularly updated disease information and HCM research opportunities. The companies noted that more than 6,000 HCM patients are currently 23andMe customers.
In addition, a custom survey will be deployed to collect baseline and follow-up longitudinal data from HCM patients who participate in further research. The companies intend to study this set of de-identified, population-scale phenotypic and genotypic data to gain unique insights that may support the broader HCM ecosystem. Summary results will be made available to patients through the 23andMe platform, MyoKardia said.
"By collaborating with 23andMe, we strive to share new insights into how HCM manifests across diverse patient groups through a unique combination of genotypic and phenotypic data," Richey Neuman, vice president of medical affairs at MyoKardia, said in a statement. "This important resource can help support patients as they navigate the challenges of daily life with HCM."
South San Francisco, California-based MyoKardia uses its precision medicine platform to generate a pipeline of therapeutics for the chronic treatment of HCM and dilated cardiomyopathy, two of the most prevalent forms of heritable cardiomyopathy.