The medical biotechnology company Overgenes, located in the business area of the University of Valencia Science Park, is working on population screening and volunteer recruitment to create the first intelligent platform with a genetic results module to facilitate the early detection, diagnosis and monitoring of sarcopenia
Sarcopenia is a pathological process that affects millions of people around the world, especially older adults, and is characterized by the progressive loss of muscle mass and strength. In response to this problem, Overgenes is focused on the recruitment of a representative sample of the general population and of professional and amateur athletes in particular, an initiative that has strategic agreements with High Performance Sports centers such as the Center for Research in High Performance Sports of the Catholic University San Antonio of Murcia (CIARD-UCAM) and other companies in the sports field such as the Proquimed laboratory located in Mexico or Be Your Best in Norway, among others.
Located at the University of Valencia Science Park (PCUV), the company has been actively recruiting and recruiting volunteers to participate in the iSARC-GENETICS project in order to ensure a representative and diverse sample to obtain genetic information for early identification and stratification of people susceptible to developing sarcopenia.
The participation of volunteers in the iSARC-GENETICS genetic screening will allow the research team to deepen in the genetic associations between these genes and sarcopenia and in the molecular mechanisms that favor the early loss of muscle mass
In this line, the collaboration with CIARD-UCAM in the framework of iSARC-GENETICS and the genetic screening recently launched by Overgenes will allow to know the genetic information of Spanish elite athletes. The selection is based on the numerous scientific evidences that point to the possible involvement of key genes for Sports Performance in the loss of muscle mass associated with age, genes such as ACTN3 and ACE, among others. Thus, the participation as volunteers of a representative sample of professional and amateur athletes in the genetic screening of the project will allow the research team to deepen in the associations between these genes and sarcopenia and in the molecular mechanisms that favor the early loss of muscle mass.
The iSARC GENETICS consortium, together with Overgenes, includes the biotechnology companies Dawako and Sabartech, the CoMMLab group (Computational Multiscale Simulation Lab) of the Universitat de València and Ci2B (Center for Research and Innovation in Bioengineering) of the Universitat Politènica de València. The consortium is supported by the Agència Valenciana de Innovació (AVI), under the Strategic Collaborative Projects program, with a grant of 770,000 euros co-financed by the European Union through the Comunitat Valenciana ERDF program 2014-2020.
5P HEALTH model
In this line, the Valencian company is focused on a new medicine more focused on prevention than diagnosis, Artificial Intelligence and Big Data. That is why Overgenes is developing a new collaborative scientific-commercial model of 5P Health (Personalized, Predictive, Preventive, Population and Participatory) that will promote the construction of a large database of information from the various actors involved (patients, clinical specialists, researchers, laboratories) that will generate new scientific knowledge and develop a new generation of preventive and predictive genetic tests 2.0, increasingly more accurate and actionable.
To this end, in addition to agreements with institutions and sports entities, Overgenes has also signed an agreement with the Spanish Society of Precision Health (SESAP). Recently, the Valencian company presented its technology and its collaborative model of 5P Health to all members of the SESAP at its annual meeting and gave a training module on Applied Genetics to students of its Master of Precision Health, with the dual objective of training prescribers of preventive genetic tests and establishing new strategic alliances to collaborate in its 5P Health model. Among Overgenes' new alliances, it is worth highlighting those established with prestigious specialists such as Jorge Cubrías, current president of SESAP and CEO of the integrative medicine clinic CellMedik.
Landing Page of the web platform that Overgenes has developed and made available to SESAP members to register in the new collaborative model of 5P Health Overgenes-SESAP and make requests for genetic testing for their patients. Photo: Overgenes
Overgenes develops a new collaborative scientific-commercial model of 5P (Personalized, Predictive, Preventive, Population and Participatory) Health, to build a large database that will integrate information from the actors involved
Thanks to collaborations with companies such as Simple Blending and fitmylegs in Spain or Genetic Testing in Colombia, the PCUV company is close to reaching the initial objective of the genetic screening study, consisting of recruiting 940 volunteers for the study of genetic markers related to predisposition to sarcopenia. The database being developed by Overgenes will allow the adjustment, evolution and validation of the Multiscale Genetic Algorithm for the early detection of sarcopenia of the iSARC-GENETICS intelligent platform, currently under development. In addition to genetic information, this database will integrate different anthropometric, clinical and sociodemographic variables, together with the contributions of medical specialists according to their clinical experience.
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