Even though they aren&#8217;t self-lacing and don&#8217;t come with a hoverboard, the limited-production Nike Mags – Marty McFly’s fly shoes from the 1989 movie Back to the Future II – are still flying off the shelves as part of the company’s effort to raise money for Parkinson’s disease research.
Since September 8th Nike began auctioning off 150 of the shoes a day on eBay with the money going to <a href="http://www.michaeljfox.org/">The Michael J. Fox Foundation</a>. The sale ends on September 18th.
23andMe co-founder Anne Wojcicki and her husband Google co-founder Sergey Brin will match all donations to the foundation, up to $50 million, through the end of 2012.
Fox, who played McFly in the three Back to the Future movies, said the campaign has brought together three passionate audiences – the Parkinson’s community, “sneakerheads,” and fans of the movies.
“With their support we can accelerate our objective of finding a cure for Parkinson’s,” Fox said.
For more than two years 23andMe has worked with the Michael J. Fox Foundation, as well as other Parkinson’s groups to enroll 10,000 patients into our <a href="https://www.23andme.com/pd/">Parkinson’s Research Community</a>. We’re more than half way there already and we’ve already made some important breakthroughs finding <a href="https://www.23andme.com/about/press/pd_discoveries_plos_62311/">two new genetic associations</a> with the diseases and confirming 20 previously identified associations.
Even with the progress we’ve made so far, we still need to enroll another 4,200 people to reach our goal. If you, or someone you know has Parkinson’s and is willing to participate in this exciting new research revolution please consider signing up.

23andMe Blog

23andMe Blog Team

McFly’s Shoes to Help Fight Parkinson’s

By Bethann Hromatka
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignright size-full wp-image-9756" title="diversity(iStockBlog)" src="https://blog-api.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/diversityiStockBlog.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="199">
The saying “men are from Mars, women are from Venus,” may have originated from personality differences between the sexes, but it also rings true for complex diseases that affect one sex more than the other. For instance, the prevalence of autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis and type 1 diabetes is higher in women than men. In addition, some diseases progress faster in one sex, and men and women can have different responses to certain therapies.
A <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21858542" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">recent study</a> by Linda Liu and colleagues at Stanford University attempted to identify some of the genetics underlying these differences. They analyzed data from one of the first genome-wide association studies (GWAS)–carried out by the Wellcome Trust Case Control Consortium (WTCCC), which looked at seven common diseases–in order to find gene variants that influence disease risk in only one sex. Most studies look for genetic variants associated with disease without performing in-depth analyses to identify sex-specific effects.
Although this is standard practice in GWAS, Liu and authors point out that some studies may have failed to find SNPs that influence disease risk in only one gender because they grouped men and women together. A combined sex GWAS is unlikely to detect a SNP that is simultaneously risky for women, but protective for men, because the effects will cancel each other out. Alternatively, if a SNP only influences risk in one sex, the association might not be observed unless the data from men and women are analyzed separately.
After applying novel statistical methods, the authors identified two female-specific SNPs linked to Crohn’s disease and a male-specific SNP associated with coronary artery disease. Although these associations were also found in the combined sex analysis by the WTCCC, the new findings provide evidence that the overall effects are driven by one sex and may not be applicable to both. Liu and her colleagues argue that GWAS should recruit larger cohorts and most importantly, equal numbers of women and men in order to systematically study sex-specific effects of genetic variants on disease.
This study suggests that most of the genetic associations identified to date are either those that impact the population as a whole, or those that are strong enough in one sex to produce an effect in a combined analysis. This implies that many more associations could be found that are specific to one sex. Says Liu and authors, “studying sex differences can help provide a missing link in terms of different gene-endocrine and gene-environment interactions in males and females.”
SNPwatch gives you the latest news about research linking various traits and conditions to individual genetic variations. These studies are exciting because they offer a glimpse into how genetics may affect our bodies and health; but in most cases, more work is needed before this research can provide information of value to individuals. For that reason it is important to remember that like all information we provide, the studies we describe in SNPwatch are for research and educational purposes only. SNPwatch is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice; you should always seek the advice of your physician or other appropriate healthcare professional with any questions you may have regarding diagnosis, cure, treatment or prevention of any disease or other medical condition.

Bethann Hromatka

Let’s Talk About Sex… in GWAS

California Governor Jerry Brown<a href="http://www.genomeweb.com/california-enacts-broad-genetic-discrimination-law" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> signed into</a> law civil rights protections to prevent discrimination against people based on their genetic information.
Authored by State Sen. Alex Padilla, the California law the use of genetic information to discriminate against a person in housing, employment, education, health insurance, life insurance, mortgage lending and elections. It takes effect January 1, 2012..
“This new law enhances the civil rights of every Californian,” Senator Padilla said in a <a href="http://dist20.casen.govoffice.com/index.asp?Type=B_PR&amp;SEC={5EACFA15-EA6B-41D8-9711-C030F9FAD5EE}&amp;DE={F9BFE373-43E6-4782-BE02-5A015BFE4341}" target="_blank" rel="noopener">press release</a> Wednesday. “Ten years from now as more and more Californians obtain their genetic information they will look back and thank Governor Brown for protecting them from discrimination.”
The new law extends California&#8217;s long standing civil rights protections and the federal protections against genetic discrimination passed by Congress in 2008. That law, the Genetic Information and Nondiscrimination Act (GINA), limits protections to   to employment and health insurance coverage.    SB 559 would ensure that the range of protections for Californians applies to all California civil rights laws and would include genetic information as a prohibited basis for discrimination.
See also: <a href="https://blog.23andme.com/articles/california-law-would-extend-genetic-non-discrimination-protections/">California Law Would Extend Genetic Non-Discrimination Protections</a>

California Governor Signs Law to Protect Against Genetic Discrimination

UPDATE (9/7/2011) California Governor Jerry Brown signed into law civil rights protections in the state to prevent discrimination against people based on their genetic information.
A new California law, awaiting Gov. Jerry Brown’s signature, would apply California’s broad anti-discriminatory protections to genetic information.
Authored by California State Senator Alex Padilla (D — Pacoima) the law, SB 559, extends the protections in the federal Genetic Information and Nondiscrimination Act (GINA). GINA currently prohibits the use of genetic information to discriminate against people in employment and insurance.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignright size-medium wp-image-8732" title="DNA-chains" src="https://blog-api.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/DNA-chains-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="279" height="210" srcset="https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/DNA-chains-300x225.jpg 300w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/DNA-chains.jpg 400w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 279px) 100vw, 279px" />
Gov. Brown hasn’t indicated whether he will sign the bill. He has until next week to decide.
Beyond the new California protections, the law and its history offer a lesson in the difficulty of drafting legislation for genetic testing.
<a href="http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/11-12/bill/sen/sb_0551-0600/sb_559_bill_20110824_enrolled.pdf">Padilla’s legislation</a> prohibits using genetic information to discriminate against people in housing, education, lending, elections, and other areas.
The proposed law essentially extends California’s existing civil rights legislation.
“Discrimination on the basis of genetic information is no less offensive than discrimination based on race, gender, or sexual orientation,” Padilla said. “California has a compelling interest in promoting and fostering the medical promise of genomics while relieving the fear of discrimination by strengthening laws to prevent it.”
Jeremy Gruber, the executive director of the Council for Responsible Genetics, applauded the law saying it would help both consumers and the industry. People will be more willing to use genetic testing knowing that the results of their tests can’t somehow be used against them.
But the legislation won’t change the regulatory framework under which direct-to-consumers genetic testing companies are currently operating.
Padilla, with the help of 23andMe, tried to do that two years ago, but that effort failed. Attorney Dan Vorhaus discussed those efforts and the nature of the new bill in a Genomics Law Report <a href="http://www.genomicslawreport.com/index.php/2011/03/23/ca-proposal-for-genetic-legislation/#more-5464">blog post</a> in March.
But when Padilla’s previous bill failed, he attempted to bring all sides together for a meaningful policy discussion. 23andMe sponsored  a daylong forum with Padilla, “Genomics and the Consumer: The Present and Future of Personalized Medicine,” last summer in San Francisco.
As 23andMe president and co-founder Anne Wojcicki said last summer, the forum was an attempt to shed light on an issue that had, up to that point, only seemed good at generating  “a lot of heat.” The forum was also an attempt to find some common ground.
Padilla noted that part of the friction surrounding the debate had to do with the speed at which genomic science has progressed. An MIT graduate, Padilla said his concern was that the inability to reach a consensus on proper oversight could hurt the development of an industry with great potential for scientific and therapeutic breakthroughs.
In many ways Padilla anticipated the current federal debate over how best to regulate the industry. In the year since that policy forum 23andMe has been in discussions with the FDA  regarding its own regulatory path, which it hopes will aid in the evolution of a rational regulatory framework for genetic testing services generally.
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California Law Would Extend Genetic Non-Discrimination Protections

<img decoding="async" class="alignright size-medium wp-image-6586" title="23andMe_Logo_blog" src="https://blog-api.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/23andMe_Logo_blog-300x299.jpg" alt="" width="250" />
In March earlier this year, <a href="https://blog.23andme.com/articles/23andme-presents-at-fda-advisory-panel-meeting-on-direct-to-consumer-genetic-tests/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">23andMe presented its views</a> on possible federal regulation of the direct-to-consumer (DTC) genetic testing industry at an Advisory Committee meeting convened by the FDA. We reiterated our belief that individuals have a right to access their own genetic information without physician involvement, and suggested components of a regulatory framework that would ensure the high quality of that genetic information while maintaining direct-to-consumer access to personal genetic testing and enabling innovation.
Despite compelling arguments for DTC genetic testing the panel concluded that access to most types of health-related genetic tests should require a physician’s approval. At 23andMe, we encourage individuals to discuss their genetic test results with their health care providers and involve them fully in decision-making about their health. But we also contend that individuals should be allowed direct access to this information. We continue to work with FDA to develop a reasonable path forward.
In the months before and following the meeting, many of you responded to our call and submitted public comments to the FDA supporting as well as arguing against direct-to-consumer genetic testing. More open and honest debate about this issue can only be beneficial for the industry over the long run.
On September 22, 2011, Bay area citizens will have another chance to make their voices heard. FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH) will be holding the third of its 2011 public town hall discussions where individuals can present their views directly to senior CDRH officials, including the Center Director, the Deputy Director for Science, and the head of the Office of In Vitro Diagnostics, which regulates DTC genetic testing. The September town hall will be held at the Embassy Suites Hotel near the San Francisco international airport.
For more information about the town hall, see the official FDA announcement. Note that while anyone in attendance can ask questions during the Q&amp;A session, individuals must register and specifically request to speak if they would like to make comments during the public presentation period.
If you have strong opinions on whether individuals should have direct access to their genetic information, we encourage you to continue making your views known to FDA, whether through in-person meetings such as the town hall in September, or through letters and other correspondence. After all, we believe that having more information is a good thing!

FDA to Hold Public Town Hall Discussion in San Francisco

Last summer, a <a href="http://www.sciencemag.org/content/early/2011/07/20/science.1190532" target="_blank" rel="noopener">study</a> published in the journal Science on the genetics of human longevity made a splash when the authors claimed that they had identified a genetic signature that could predict with 77% accuracy whether someone would live past 100. The bold findings immediately came under fire from other geneticists and scientists who read the paper and found the study&#8217;s methodological rigor lacking. One of 23andMe&#8217;s own researchers David Hinds published a <a href="https://blog.23andme.com/articles/snpwatch-uncertainty-surrounds-longevity-gwas/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">detailed critique</a> on this blog soon after, accompanied by analyses done using 23andMe&#8217;s own database.
After more than a year, the authors have <a href="http://www.sciencemag.org/content/333/6041/404.1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">formally retracted</a> the longevity study from the scientific record. An independent lab had redone the experiment and the analyses to eliminate the major concerns brought up by the study&#8217;s critics, but Science decided that the resubmitted work no longer met its standards for genome-wide association studies.
Read more at <a href="https://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2011/07/longevity-genetics-study-retracted-from-science/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Genetic Future</a>, <a href="http://retractionwatch.wordpress.com/2011/07/21/sebastiani-group-retracts-genetics-of-aging-study-from-science/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Retraction Watch</a>, or <a href="https://www.nature.com/news/2011/110721/full/news.2011.429.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nature News</a>.

Controversial Longevity Paper Formally Retracted

<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignright wp-image-6398 size-medium" title="sarcoma-large" src="http://35.88.189.111/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/sarcoma-large1-300x245.jpg" alt="Sarcoma Research logo" width="300" height="245" srcset="https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/sarcoma-large1-300x245.jpg 300w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/sarcoma-large1.jpg 315w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />
[Update: View a video recap of Sarcoma Community Night at <a href="https://www.23andme.com/sarcoma" target="_blank" rel="noopener">https://www.23andme.com/sarcoma/</a>]
Three.
That was the average number of patients enrolled in studies for sarcoma four years ago when Nathalie Criou, a sarcoma cancer survivor and founder of <a href="http://www.beatsarcoma.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Beat Sarcoma</a>, looked around for new information about her disease.
Criou’s story, told at 23andMe’s headquarters for Sarcoma Community Night on a rainy Tuesday night last week, was a sobering reminder of how challenging research has been into this rare form of cancer. Earlier in the evening, Stanford oncologist and researcher Dr. Kristen Ganjoo told the audience about promising sarcoma treatments, but she also explained that even now clinical trials to approve new drugs for sarcoma routinely shut down simply because they can’t find enough people to sign up.
To the almost two dozen people affected by sarcoma gathered that night, these stories were all too familiar. Sarcoma is rare &#8212; only about 12,000 people are diagnosed with it in the United States each year &#8212; and extremely diverse, with about 50 distinct subtypes. Each type often progresses differently and can require individualized approaches to therapy, making developing effective treatments for sarcomas very difficult.
“You raise your hand and say ‘does anyone else have this?’ and no one else raises their hand,” explained Carole, who has a rare sub-type of sarcoma.
But what if there was a way to bring together sarcoma patients from far and wide and involve them in research into their disease? For Criou, an advocate and former patient, hearing about 23andMe’s <a href="https://www.23andme.com/sarcoma/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sarcoma research initiative</a> offered something new.
“We’re talking about a huge difference &#8212; we’re talking three [people], or 550,” Criou explained, comparing her numbers from four years ago to the current number of individuals enrolled in 23andMe’s Sarcoma research community. “And it’s 550 people that can come back, that more than one question can be sent to.” But Criou also sees this initiative having a much broader impact.
<img decoding="async" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-9387" title="beat_sarcoma" src="https://blog-api.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/beat_sarcoma.gif" alt="" width="215" />
“I really see this as a great platform for other rare cancers, other rare diseases, and in fact, any disease &#8212; it doesn’t have to be rare,” said Criou. “If we can show that a community like sarcoma &#8212; which is probably one of the toughest challenges from a research perspective &#8212; can use that tool&#8230; hopefully it will create a trend for sarcoma, and for other diseases.”
This is the hope for many who have joined 23andMe’s Sarcoma research initiative. While it still has a lot to prove, the initiative has brought together a community of patients who for years felt like they’d been abandoned by researchers and funders.
“When I was first diagnosed, the message I got was ‘there’s nothing anyone can do and you’re in big, big trouble,’” said Robin, a sarcoma survivor. “That was seven years ago and I’m still here. I feel really grateful, actually, that a community is pulling together to try and take a look at this.”
Even though Robin is currently sarcoma-free, she’s joining because she knows how rare sarcoma is and the challenges it presents to researchers. “If someone is willing to study us, I’m more than happy to be involved. It’s such a rare thing that there’s probably not enough money in it to have motivated people to study it in the past, and very little is known about it. I’m a survivor, and I’m here to participate and see what I can do.”
<img decoding="async" class="alignleft size-medium wp-image-9388" title="sarcoma_alliance" src="https://blog-api.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/sarcoma_alliance-217x300.jpg" alt="" width="120" srcset="https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/sarcoma_alliance-217x300.jpg 217w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/sarcoma_alliance.jpg 225w" sizes="(max-width: 217px) 100vw, 217px" />
And the initiative doesn’t just offer hope for new research, it also allows interaction between patients and researchers. Indeed, after all of the panelists had spoken the room came alive with questions. Sometimes, the answers came not just from the expert panel, which included UCSF cancer surgeon Dr. Eric Nakakura and Arthur Beckert of the <a href="http://www.sarcomaalliance.org/main.shtml" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sarcoma Alliance</a> in addition to Criou and Dr. Ganjoo, but from others in the audience. People asked about the latest research, gave tips on where to find clinical trials, and brainstormed creative ways to leverage this new sarcoma community.
It was perhaps this last activity that best communicated the power and potential of 23andMe’s research community. Everyone was engaged by the possibility of enabling individuals to contribute directly to research &#8212; not just once, but continuously, in an evolving, collaborative, and exploratory process.
<img decoding="async" style="margin-top: 5px;" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-j_CwEt8qQQFptWDmv1p49_soby0YSFsRKLJW1DZvGmaGeysr-uf7HkpnFiu5iJJZzhSX1VXtPgJw_jQqj2TzB1cLlmKN3KpOW1w2Ko509_Gn7pbSrE" alt="" width="298px" height="193px" />
In her comments, 23andMe co-founder and CEO Anne Wojcicki emphasized the collaborative nature of 23andMe’s research communities. “The whole purpose of 23andMe is to give everybody who has something they’re passionate about a platform, and use what’s fundamentally their own to make a difference in research and learn things about themselves that are going to be meaningful. It’s about ‘how can we all come together and do something so it’s going to change things for ourselves, or change it for our children, or others out there?’ Our goal is to really be that partnership between you and the entire research world, so we can move things forward much faster.”
Wojcicki also acknowledged the non-traditional approach 23andMe is taking. “We want to do things that are ultimately going to help researchers, but at the same time we’re definitely shaking things up a little bit!”
Sarcoma patients and survivors weren’t the only ones who appreciated this vision. As Brian, a family friend of a woman diagnosed with uterine leiomyosarcoma, put it, “you don’t have to be part of some subset or some disease &#8212; this type of research can be for everybody.”
“It’s exactly what I’ve been hoping for for ten years,” said Suzy, a 10-year leiomyosarcoma survivor. “I’m glad that there’s more community and more people coming together because there’s a lot of information to be shared. I’m hopeful that with strength in numbers, if we can get people to sign up and we can get information&#8230; for people like us, with rare cancers, this is what we need.”
To learn more about 23andMe’s Sarcoma research community or to join, please visit <a href="https://www.23andme.com/sarcoma" target="_blank" rel="noopener">https://www.23andme.com/sarcoma</a>. A video recap of Sarcoma Community Night is also available at that link.

A Recipe for Disease Research: Give People Tools, Add Passion, and Shake

<img decoding="async" class="alignright size-full wp-image-9364" title="Biopunk Book Cover" src="https://blog-api.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/biopunk-art3.jpg" alt="" width="200" srcset="https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/biopunk-art3.jpg 332w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/biopunk-art3-200x300.jpg 200w" sizes="(max-width: 332px) 100vw, 332px" />

Marcus Wohlsen is on to something.
An Associated Press science and biotechnology writer, Wohlsen is the author of the book BioPunk: DIY Scientists Hack the Software of Life.


The book, which came out in April, outlines the parallels between the current community of upstart amateur scientists working in makeshift kitchen labs and garages with the early years of the personal computer and the birth of the dotcom industry.


The conceit of the book is that just as Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak – geeked-out members of the <a href="http://www.atariarchives.org/deli/homebrew_and_how_the_apple.php">Homebrew Computer Club</a> – could assemble off-the-shelf components in a garage in Cupertino and launch Apple Computers, some tattooed punk scientists may soon unveil a new biotechnology breakthrough at Maker Faire.


Well, maybe.
There is no doubt that the <a href="http://diygenomics.org/">tools</a> needed to make big leaps in innovation in biotechnology are more readily available to the Everyman, or Everywoman.
This has happened in an area that is progressing like Moore’s law on steroids, where instead of computer chips doubling their processing power every two years, genome sequencers are doubling in performance every six months.
It’s actually a weakness of the book that in some sections it already appears dated. There are a few pages that mention 23andMe and other direct-to-consumer genetics companies that feel like an old newspaper clipping. A <a href="http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/11_24/b4232090972319.htm">book review </a>by Daniel Grushkin nailed the point home by saying that Wohlsen finished his reporting too soon.
But that rapid change and progress is part of what has enthralled many enthusiasts in the movement, when it feels as if mankind is on the verge of a major leap forward in understanding the basic code of life.
It’s here that Wohlsen’s book is especially powerful. He has captured a moment and tapped into the energy of a truly driven tribe of citizen scientists.
Wohlsen uses a grab bag of characters as diverse as <a href="http://openwetware.org/wiki/User:Kaull">Kay Aull</a>, a MIT graduate in bioengineering, who developed a procedure in her apartment that diagnosed her dad’s hemochromatosis.
Then there’s Tito Jankowski and Josh Perfetto, two guys who built a <a href="http://openpcr.org//">cheap kit for a polymerase chain reaction</a> (PCR). PCR amplifies DNA for sequencing and is one of the most useful instruments for molecular biology. Wohlson spends some time with Eri Gentry and John Schloendorn, who studied cancer cells in their kitchen. Gentry formed the non-profit <a href="https://www.facebook.com/BioCurious">BioCurious</a>, a sort of co-op lab space set to open in Mountain View. The two also have their hands in several other endeavors involved in pharmaceuticals, health and personal genetics.


While all these people are working outside traditional labs, in most cases they also come from traditional science backgrounds. They began to dabble outside the those confines because they were stymied in some ways from doing what they want. In the process of hacking and tinkering with how science is traditionally done, they’ve invited anyone else interested to come along for the ride.
“The plummeting costs of enabling technologies has brought meaningful biological research back within reach of the independent citizen scientist. From Bio-Art to BioFuels, the wave of next generation biotech applications is set to transform our culture and economy.”


That description of BioCurious, posted on Hackerspaces, is a good outline of Wohlsen’s thesis. Wohlsen sees the collection of people he’s profiled in BioPunk as the vanguard of a movement for a more open type of science, that is driven less by profit than by simple curiosity and a passion for learning.

Biopunks, Science and Discovery

<div style="width: 300px; border: 2px solid #000000; background-color: #ffffff; float: right; padding: 10px; margin-left: 15px;">
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-9149 size-larger" title="100000_ascii" src="http://35.88.189.111/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/100000_ascii-880x257.png" alt="An image of the number 100,000." width="880" height="257" srcset="https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/100000_ascii-880x257.png 880w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/100000_ascii-300x88.png 300w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/100000_ascii-768x224.png 768w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/100000_ascii-1024x299.png 1024w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/100000_ascii.png 1069w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 880px) 100vw, 880px" />
Database Snapshot:
100,611 users genotyped
76% have agreed to participate in research
59% take surveys
57% are male
47% are sharing with other users
12% have multiple ancestries
45 is the average age
100,409 posts in our community forums
60,000 pairs of relatives among users (4th cousin or closer)
</div>
More than 100,000 people have turned to 23andMe to explore their DNA for insights into their health and ancestry.
<h6>More than a Number</h6>
Linked by a shared curiosity about themselves and a willingness to participate in research, these individuals have created a powerful tool for making discoveries that could help many others. 23andMe’s unique combination of DNA technology, web-accessible tools, and content, and social networking has empowered users, who, in turn, have helped us create a new paradigm for research.
So far, more than three-fourths of 23andMe’s users have allowed our scientists to incorporate their genetic data, as well as their responses to online questionnaires, into our research. Nearly 60,000 of our users take online surveys and those who take surveys filled out at least 10 on average. They’ve contributed millions of responses to thousands of survey questions. Hundreds of users have also taken the step of submitting research topics of their own for 23andMe to investigate.
Clearly, people want a voice in reshaping healthcare and they want to accelerate scientific discovery.
<h6>23andMe Research</h6>
Through the flow of survey responses and the continued growth of our database, we’ve broken new ground. Our team of 20 scientists –including statistical geneticists, survey specialists, bioinformaticists and a medical doctor – run more than 1,000 genome-wide association studies for hundreds of conditions on a regular basis.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignright wp-image-4013 size-medium" title="geneticresearch7" src="http://35.88.189.111/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/geneticresearch7-300x230.jpg" alt="An illustration of how 23andMe customers genetics and survey responses contribute to research findings." width="300" height="230" srcset="https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/geneticresearch7-300x230.jpg 300w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/geneticresearch7.jpg 350w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />
In just about three years, we’ve discovered new genetic associations for common traits, found novel genetic links for childhood and adult infections, replicated more than 150 previously identified genetic associations for dozens of common diseases and medical conditions, and discovered several new genetic variants associated with Parkinson’s disease.
Our Parkinson’s Research Community represents one of the largest Parkinson’s studies in the world. It’s a model we’ve used for our Sarcoma Research Community, which is now one of the largest group of patients with this rare disease. And we’re applying our research model in many other areas, including a recently-launched NIH-funded study into how genetics affects individual response to common medications.
As more people join 23andMe, our collective understanding of human genetics grows. We are focusing on research where it is needed most. We are accelerating the pace at which our discoveries come back to those who contribute to it. We believe that a world in which individuals understand more about themselves is good. And we know that 100,000 is only the beginning.

News — Page 30