In recent years, the Indian gene industry is booming. Some industry leaders believe that the gene industry is expected to become a new economic growth point in India after the IT industry. This article was compiled from India Business Today 》 , introduces the current layout of the Indian gene industry from three main aspects: industry, enterprise and future.
Do you have a genetic susceptibility to certain diseases? Do you carry a mutation that affects your child’s health?
Recently, the Indian government has launched a debit card-sized Indian Genome Card. If your genetic information has been listed by the Indian Council of Science and Industry Research ( CSIR) The database is being built, then the answers to the above two questions are ready. Once your genome has completed the workflow from blood sample extraction to adding a database, this card can read the information embedded in your genes, just like your debit card can generate a financial transaction report from a bank database.
However, it must be emphasized that this card is not the answer to the problem. Genome sequencing—or, in other words, mapping the basic structural patterns of every living cell—is. The genome contains the genetic material of all organisms (Simply, the genetic component is a chromosome, the chromosome contains a gene, and the gene is composed of DNA) , each genome is approximately There are 3.2 billion DNA base pairs, and their arrangement, variants and mutations can become important research clues. By analyzing these clues, researchers can gauge whether an individual’s physical condition is healthy. If the subject is a patient, it can also be determined whether the cause of his or her illness is due to a specific disease gene innate or the virus or bacterial infection acquired the day after tomorrow.
As of now, 1008 people have obtained this “gene card”, and related institutions believe that their genes can reflect the diversity of Indian society, ethnicity and region. at the same timeMore than 280 doctors from more than 70 institutions will also be trained to explore the information revealed by the genome as soon as possible.
In addition, the leading academic research institute of the Indian Public Health Genomics Project (referred to as the IndiGen project) is also an institute under the CSIR — —Institute of Genomics and Integrated Biology (IGIB) is also planning to recruit 20,000 Indians to participate in whole-genome sequencing in the next few years. A much larger database.
These data are of great significance for the development of the emerging precision medicine field. After all, the basic data and expertise required for precision medicine need the pouring of gene databases. IndiGen will also apply to this database in many other areas: faster and more efficient diagnosis of rare diseases, reducing the cost of genetic testing, screening couples’ gene vectors, efficient diagnosis of cancer heredity, and the use of drugs Genetic tests to prevent adverse drug reactions.
Due to the increase in computing power, the cost of global genome sequencing has decreased significantly. This gives the technology the possibility of “breaking circles”. In addition to disease diagnosis and treatment, drug development and side-effect research, genetic technology has been applied to many new fields such as agriculture, sports, environmental protection, and animal productivity enhancement.
A comparison between today and the past: 17 years ago, a global project led by the US National Academy of Sciences (US National Academy of Sciences) It took a full 12 years and cost $ 3 billion to complete the sequencing of the first human genome; but now CSIR completed the genome sequencing of 1,008 Indian citizens in just six months. If you want to sequence your genome today, it costs less than $ 1,000. Sam Santosh, chairman of private company MedGenome Labs, even said that he could complete a person’s complete genome sequencing in his laboratory in Bangalore for only $ 500 to $ 600.
Industry
IndiGen project takes shape thanks to next-generation sequencing technology over the past decade (Next Generation Sequencing, also known as high-throughput sequencing technology, NGS for short) is widely used. NGS is an upgraded version of the dideoxy sequencing method (Sanger sequencing technology) . From the point of view of efficiency, the two differ greatly: Complete gene sequencing, dideoxy sequencing method takes ten years, but NGS only takes a whole day. Currently, both IGIB and MedGenome are using NGS technology for high-throughput sequencing-hundreds of thousands of genes can be sequenced at a time.
For India, the emergence of the public health genomics project (also known as IndiGen) is certainly a good start, but just In terms of genetic technology, some countries are already far ahead. The public-private partnership established by the British government and Illumina, the world’s largest manufacturer of NGS sequencing machines, the British genome company (Genomics England) has completed Sequencing of 100,000 genomes of British citizens, including cancer patients, patients with rare diseases, and healthy citizens. On January 23, the two also signed a new agreement to sequence 300,000 genomes. The agreement also provides that the two parties can choose to increase the number of sequencing to 500,000 within the next five years.
“Countries like Estonia and Iceland are preparing to genetically sequence each national and link this data to their medical plans.” Premas Life Sciences (Premas Life Sciences, hereinafter referred to as Premas) said Praveen Gupta, founder and general manager. Premas is an authorized partner of Illumina U.S. headquarters in India.
“The global high-throughput genomics industry is expected to be between $ 10 billion and $ 12 billion, with an annual growth rate of about 25-30%. It is expected to grow to a value of 25-30 billion in the next 3 to 4 years The dollar market, “Gupta added.
Premas’s main business is genetic testing in IndiaThe lab sells software and hardware infrastructure, including reagents, experimental platforms, software systems, and training services. The company’s market share in India is as high as 90%, and its flagship high-throughput sequencing technology is also widely used in India.
“In India, approximately 50,000 samples enter the clinical services market each year; the market size of the high-throughput genomics market, including reagents, instruments, and services, is expected to reach around Rs 5 crore in the future.” Gputa said .
Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology (The IGIB mentioned above) Scientists Dr. Sridhar Sivasubbu and Dr. Vinod Scaria are part of the IndiGen project Research leader. Both scientists say genetic sequencing is just the beginning.
In fact, IGIB also leads two important projects: the Indian Rare Disease Genome Research Alliance (GUaRDIAN) and the genome and adjunct to aid medical decision making Bioscientific tool research (GOMED) .
Both projects are under the direct responsibility of Dr. Mohammed Faruq. The research aims to find lower cost and better diagnostic tools and testing methods through genomic databases and genetic disease screening, and license them to private and public Medical institutions.
“GUaRDIAN project focuses on the treatment of rare diseases. As a country with a population of more than 1 billion, even the rarest” rare disease “has hundreds of thousands of patients. The GUARDIAN is facing 70 million people nationwide People with genetic diseases. We provide technical solutions to more than 7,000 rare diseases treated by more than 280 clinicians across the country and more than 280 clinicians. “Sivasubbu said.
“Patients and family members contact us through the GUARDIAN network. We find mutations by sequencing their genes. Once the mutant genes are locked, we return to their community and use a low-cost test. To confirm how many community members have this kind of gene mutation. That is to say, we only need to look for that single mutation in other people, compared with the complete sequencing of a person ’s genes, Great deal, “Scaria said..
The cost of whole genome sequencing is Rs 50,000 to 100,000, while the cost of a single gene analysis developed by IGIB through these projects is only Rs 2,000.
At present, a team led by Sivasubbu and Scaria has developed 180 genetic tests, and these technological achievements have been linked to private diagnostic laboratories. Over the past two years, the institute has served approximately 10,000 patients and completed approximately 25,000 tests. “We have established cooperative relationships with more than a dozen companies. The forms of cooperation are more flexible, and mainly depend on their own business models,” Sivasubbu said.
Private Enterprise
Dr Lal PathLabs is an experimental institution that studies pathology. The company has a genetic testing department that is ambitious in genetic research.
“At the macro level, we can provide full-level karyotype analysis; at the micro level, we can also provide medium-resolution microarrays, and high-throughput sequencing (NGS) clarify the DNA sequence. The areas of prenatal reproductive health, cancer diagnosis, and pharmacogenetics are the focus of our company. Now we have developed more than 200 kinds The genetic testing protocol can do about 300 tests per day. “Said Dr. Vandana Lal, Managing Director of Dr Lal PathLabs.
In addition, the company has obtained official licenses for diagnostic tests for 27 diseases from IGIB. “Imported technology is still very expensive now, so we decided to cooperate with CSIR Labs in an effort to allow the majority of Indians to enjoy the benefits of cutting-edge technology at a relatively reasonable price,” Dr. Lal added.
Another company active in genetic testing in partnership with IGIB is Lifecell International.
“We can provide basic screening from (including but not limited to prenatal screening, newborn screening, etc.) to Various genetic testing solutions for high-end screening based on NGS technology; Can detect genetic samples of more than 50,000 patients each month. PCR detection (Translator’s Note: PCR, Polymerase Chain Reaction: Polymerase Chain Reaction) The price is about 2000 ~ 5000 rupees, and The cost of NGS testing can be as high as Rs 20,000. “Says Ishaan Khanna, Lifecell Biobank and Diagnostics Business Director.
Khanna believes IndiGen’s database will help the company develop better analysis and interpretation tools.
“Our work focuses on developing rapid genomic tests for children in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Because when faced with pediatric patients who need urgent care, doctors must Obtain clear test results within time. In this regard, the combination of genomic databases provided by IndiGen has helped us a lot. “He said.
However, not all companies are interested in low-cost genetic testing, such as medical imaging chain Mahajan Imaging. The company has established an advanced research center for imaging, neuroscience and genomics, focusing on cutting-edge scientific research. The main idea is to integrate image genomic data, provide technical support to related companies applying radiology and genomic science, and help the latter. Developed world-class clinical medical products.
“We started this project six months ago, and we are also one of the first imaging companies to enter genomics. I think that in the next 3 to 5, artificial intelligence algorithms may have the ability to read radiological images “Said Vidur Mahajan, vice chairman of Mahajan Imaging.
Chennai-based Trivitron Healthcare sees another business opportunity. The company hopes to use IndiGene’s database to develop genetic testing tools that can be applied to traditional medical platforms.
“There are more than 100,000 pathology laboratories in India, but only 500 ~ 1000 of them can do genetic testing. We are negotiating with IGIB and hope to provide more people with genetic testing related products through cooperation and learning. “Jameel Ahmad Khan, Director of Trivitron R & D said:
“IGIB will share technology with us, and we will commercialize the technology. The ultimate goal is to lower the threshold for product use, so that most people who have not received high-end technical training can also operate the pathology laboratory. Genetic testing equipment. “
Bangalore-based Medgenome Labs owns itself as “IGIB in the private sector.” The company not only provides genetic testing services, it also has its own research institute. They even said that in some specific branch areas, their own research and development level is still ahead of IGIB for several years.
Medgenome has established a partnership with Nanyang Technological University of Singapore to sequence 100,000 whole genomes in Asia. As of now, the Asian Genome Project (Genome Asia project) has completed the sequencing of 10,000 genomes, of which about 8,000 are from India. On December 4, 2019, the well-known international journal Nature published the preliminary research results of the project.
The topics discussed in this project include genetic variation, population structure, disease association, etc. The samples are derived from whole-genome sequencing data of 219 population groups in Asia and 1,739 people in 64 countries.
“We sequence a single individual’s genes and other relevant parts of the gene map to lock in specific gene mutations. This way we can know what causes a certain disease. At the same time, we can also start from The genetic perspective provides a deeper understanding of the changes in the body’s response after taking specific drugs and trying different dosages. In this way, we can allow pharmaceutical companies to better understand the human genome and help them discover new drug targets Points and biomarkers, “said Sam Santosh, chairman of MedGenome.
It is reported that the company’s genetic samples are mainly provided by more than 10,000 clinicians across the country. As for why these doctors are willing to work with MedGenome, you have to ask the company’s more than 120 sales staff.
“We are the first company to enter this market. From this perspective, even if you say, ‘We created the market’, it is no exaggeration. The current market share of MedGenome is 60 ~ 65%. We expect The market size of the entire gene sequencing industry is about 70 to 75 million US dollars. “
As for disease diagnosis, SAntosh believes that the total output value of the business in the next four years will reach 100 million US dollars.
It is worth mentioning that MedGenomes also recently sequenced and analyzed the cobra genome. Researchers have found that the idea that the scientific community has been expecting to “develo new anti-venom in the laboratory alone” is realistic.
India is home to more than 60 poisonous snakes, and the number of people killed or disabled by snake bites is the highest in the world. The golden cure after a snake bite is to inject an anti-venom serum, which can resist the venom of the “big four snakes”. For more than a century, the research and development of antiviral serum has almost been done by injecting venom into animals such as horses and sheep to collect antibodies produced by their immune systems. At present, the production of anti-venom drugs in India is mainly the injection of mixed venoms of Russell Viper, Serpentine Viper, Cobra and Common Golden Ring Snake into horses. However, these venoms are entirely from snakes in Tamil Nadu, southern India, and this has hidden dangers: a large number of studies have shown that the venoms of various snakes are very different. Even the same venom has the same venom composition. Changes with geographical and population differences. Some experts said that only 15% of antibodies in snake venoms are specific to toxins, and the rest are consumed by parasites or bacteria.
So, if the characteristics of venomous snakes can be understood at the genetic level, then researchers can “respond to snakes” and directly develop venom-resistant venoms in the laboratory. This not only saves a lot of research costs, but more importantly, it can directly help Indian residents and keep them away from the fear of poisonous snakes. It is reported that the research results of MedGenomes have also been published in the journal Nature.
“Broken Circle”
Premas Life Sciences, Illumina’s authorized US partner in India, sells their NGS gene sequencer to more than just medical companies. Gupta, the company ’s founder, revealed that they have more than 200 branches in All India: “As long as it is biological, there must be DNA and nucleic acid; as long as there is nucleic acid, sequencing can be performed. We have a large market research team, almost every All branches can do genetic sequencing. Some teams study cows, some study rice, and others specialize in bacteria. “
IGIB researchers Dr. Sridhar and Dr. Vinod Scaria affirmed Premas’s strategy. In fact, even IGIB is not only concerned about the pharmaceutical industry. They are working with an online platform for food industry professionalsTagtaste collaborates to study taste genomics.
“It may surprise you to say that, but the efficiency of a professional bartender may indeed be related to his or her genes.” Scaria said.
Tagtaste’s customers and partners include Pepsi, Coca-Cola, Nestle, and the International Tea Committee (International Tea Committee, ITC ) , and many industry giants of global hotel chains. To the company, “taste” is a highly rigorous business.
“If a customer spends 3,000 rupees for a certain curry and 5,000 rupees for a soup drink, then as a merchant, you have to make sure that the taste of your product must be right,” Scaria said.
In addition to catering, IGIB is also involved in the fitness industry. They do research and development with Adam ’s Genetics in an attempt to meet the product needs of companies related to the sports industry.
“One of the companies makes cricket-related products. We know that every player can see their athletic performance through genetic testing, and we can also study their most appropriate food intake based on this Due to different genes, even if everyone eats the same food, some people will gain weight, some people will not gain weight; some people gain weight but not muscle gain, of course, some people gain weight and increase muscle at the same time In addition to gaining muscle, genetic testing can also tell if a person is easily injured or if a certain training method is suitable for his body. For example, lifting weights, some cricketers may not be suitable for using the weight lifting method. To improve athletic performance, “Sivasubbu explains.
The future
India accounts for 17% of the world ’s population, but from a global perspective, only 0.2% of genomic data comes from Indians. In the field of genetic testing, India has the ability to become an industry leader. On the South Asian subcontinent, we have seen too many diseases and sufferings. If Indian scientific research institutions and business organizations can provide genetic maps, the world can find solutions for the diagnosis and treatment of related diseases as soon as possible.
“What we can do is contribute to creativitySexual thinking. We didn’t invent computers, but we have a thriving IT industry here. By the same token, although we are not the inventors of gene sequencing technology, in the near future, there will also be a prosperous ‘gene information economy’. “Said Gupta of Premas.
There are more possibilities for the gene industry:
“Many authoritative experts have reached a consensus. In the next 5 to 6 years, 15% of the world ’s population will complete genome sequencing. If I need a 100GB genome sequence data, then 1.5 billion genes The original data provided by the sequencer must reach 25 to 30 exabytes (EB) of data. What is this concept? All the data published on the YouTube platform add up to only 0.8 exabytes. As you can imagine How huge the entire data analysis volume is. At this time, if we can effectively train and mobilize the labor force of the domestic gene industry, it is creating a new industry. We may become the global genetic data analysis industry in the next two decades. , Just like what our IT industry has achieved in the past. “
Gupta is confident in the future of the Indian gene industry.