Unlocking new insights into serious diseases

This government agency in Korea supports the advancement of public health. It aims to build a population health and genetic data hub—collected through voluntary participation—that will empower researchers to predict and diagnose diseases to which Koreans are particularly susceptible.

In total, the government agency plans to sequence the genomes of one million Koreans. The organization has already recruited more than 15,000 volunteers to provide DNA samples for sequencing, including people with rare diseases and their families.

A spokesperson elaborates: “By building a rich set of genomic data including people with serious diseases as well as the general public, we aim to contribute to earlier and more accurate detection of diseases and more effective therapies.”

To reach its target of one million genomes, the organization plans to ramp up its sequencing efforts significantly in the years ahead. However, its previous genomic data platform made scaling up costly and complex.