NEW YORK (GenomeWeb) – A consortium of globally distributed research centers today launched the International Phenome Centre Network (IPCN) with the objective of researching autism, cancer, diabetes, dementia, and obesity among other pressing global health challenges.
Consortium members in six countries will use chromatography, mass spectrometry, and other technologies to conduct metabolic phenotyping research that examines the dynamic interactions between genes, environments, microbiomes, diets, and lifestyles, and their collective impact on disease.
Waters Corporation, a founding corporate partner of the IPCN, said it will support the network by contributing chromatography and mass spectrometry technologies and expertise. The firm also noted that it already collaborates with institutions around the world, applying analytical and mathematical approaches to study robust and harmonized data that represents diverse populations. The research could unravel molecular underpinnings of disease and inform the development of new therapies and global public health policies, Waters added.
In a statement, Waters Senior Vice President of Applied Technology Rohit Khanna said, "We are excited by the revolutionary potential of the International Phenome Centre Network to harmonize the way researchers around the world collect and assess data through metabolic phenotyping."
The MRC-NIHR National Phenome Centre at Imperial College London initiated the development of the IPCN, and the consortium includes more than a dozen international partners with regional, multi-institutional hubs in Australia, Canada, China, Japan, Singapore, Taiwan, the US, and the UK.