Sequence Bio: Unlocked Newfoundland’s genetics for drug discovery

Hi from Newfoundland, Chris from Sequence Bio here. We built the legislative and ethical framework to unlock Newfoundland’s (NL) enriched genetic data for drug discovery. Not all data is created equal, and Newfoundland’s isolated genetics, health records and high disease rates make it more interesting than most. So, we spent 5 years working to be able to research this data… including amending Canada’s Human Rights Act to outlaw genetic discrimination and winning in the Newfoundland Supreme Court to ensure our research could happen. We just started recruiting Newfoundlanders for our research project, called the NL Genome Project, 45 days ago and 800 people have already donated their genetic and personal health information. We’ll combine this information and study it at scale to find different mutations or variations - almost like finding an interesting typo in our genetic codes. This is an effort by Newfoundlanders, for Newfoundlanders, but the discoveries we make can have an impact around the world. You can check out the project on our website.