The new in-house Centre for Genomics Research of AstraZeneca will host a newly formed database of genome sequences from samples donated by patients in its clinical trials together with associated clinical and drug response data.
Under the terms of the initiative, US-based Human Longevity will sequence full genomes and apply its state-of-the-art machine learning and pattern recognition.
Genomics’ experts of the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute (UK) will act together with AstraZeneca to identify new targets and biomarkers with potential use in diagnostic tests.
The Institute for Molecular Medicine (Finland) will be involved in the study of genes of interest in the Finnish population, which is known to carry a higher than normal frequency of rare variants.
AstraZeneca also announced the acquisition of the core respiratory business of Takeda. The agreement includes the expansion of rights to roflumilast, the only approved oral PDE4 inhibitor for the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
Watch a short video explaining the genomics platform at AstraZeneca.