Clinical pharmacology and therapeutics
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Clin. Pharmacol. Ther. · Jun 2012
Review Meta AnalysisWhole-genome sequencing in personalized therapeutics.
Eleven years since the initial drafts of the human genome were published, we have begun to see the first examples of the application of whole-genome sequencing to personalized diagnosis and therapeutics. The exponential decline in sequencing costs and the constant improvement in these technologies promise to further advance the use of a patient's full genetic profile in the clinic. However, realizing the potential benefit of such sequencing will require a concerted effort by science, medicine, law, and management. In this review, we discuss current approaches to decoding the 6 billion-letter genetic code of a whole genome in a clinical context, give current examples of translating this information into therapy-guiding knowledge, and list the challenges that will need to be surmounted before these powerful data can be fully exploited to forward the goals of personalized medicine.
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Clin. Pharmacol. Ther. · Jun 2012
EditorialTranslational bioinformatics: data-driven drug discovery and development.
Internet-accessible computing power and data-sharing mandates now enable researchers to interrogate thousands of publicly available databases containing molecular, clinical, and epidemiological data. With emerging new approaches, translational bioinformatics can now provide answers to previously untouchable questions, ranging from detecting population signals of adverse drug reactions to clinical interpretation of the whole genome. There are challenges, including lack of access to some data sources and software, but there are also overwhelming doses of hopes and expectations.