Devices & Diagnostics, Pharma, Policy, Startups

How your DNA may write your next drug prescription

In the back seat of a taxi, on the way home from oral arguments in […]

In the back seat of a taxi, on the way home from oral arguments in the AMP v. Myriad Genetics Supreme Court case, Chris Mason and Jeffrey Rosenfeld decided to start a company.

Mason, a faculty member at Weill Cornell Medical School and an affiliate of Yale University, had provided expert witness testimony to the court. The ruling that followed – in favor of lifting gene patents held by Myriad and other companies – “opened an era of genomic liberty,” said Rosenfeld, a professor at Rutgers Medical School.

Now free to work with thousands of genes that had been patented, the duo wanted to provide a service that would give consumers direct access to their own genomic data.

If you’re immediately thinking of 23andMe, hear these guys out. Rosenfeld insists that Genome Liberty’s tests will deliver only actionably information that would help consumers make smart choices, where other kinds of mail-in tests deliver way too much data that’s not necessarily helpful.

“If they tell me I’m five times more at risk for a certain disease, there’s nothing I can do about it. It just scares me,” he said.

Instead, the company’s $99 gene-drug interaction test assesses the compatibility of several commonly used drugs with a person’s genetic profile. Customers order a saliva testing kit on Genome Liberty’s website and send back a sample. In its lab, the company extracts DNA from the sample and tests for genetic variants corresponding to drug responses. The test covers commonly used drugs including Abilify, Plavix, Nexium, Prilosec, Zocor, Celexa and codeine. It also looks for a clotting disorder known as Factor V Leiden, which can cause blood clots in women who take estrogen.

Within two weeks of mailing in their sample, customers receive a report they can take to their physician that outlines recommended and discouraged medications. That information is also made available via an online portal and mobile app. Rosenfeld said Genome Liberty also has genetic counselors on staff who are available to talk with customers.

These kinds of gene-drug interactions have been studies by many academics and outlined in dozens of publications that the team pulled together, Rosenfeld said. In fact, there are a few other companies out there already doing this. YouScript, for one, offers a similar test with a prescription from a doctor.

But Genome Liberty is going straight to the consumer because most physicians aren’t taking the initiative to order these tests, Rosenfeld said. Either they don’t feel confident interpreting the results or just use trial and error to figure out the proper drug and dosage for a patient. Having those answers off the bat could in theory save time, money and unnecessary pain or hassle.

To rally the public and raise enough money to get the company on its feet, Mason and Rosenfeld are running a RocketHub crowdfunding campaign where they’re taking pre-orders for the tests, set to launch this fall.

[Featured image credit: BigStock Photos]

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