Genset established in April 99 a Physiological Genomics Department to reinforce its obesity program. The initial work was conducted in a research collaboration agreement between Genset and Inserm. In January 2000 Genset and Whitehead Institute signed license and research agreements in the field of obesity and diabetes. The Whitehead will collaborate with Genset to establish a high throughput functional cloning program designed to discover and characterize important potential therapeutic targets for metabolic diseases. Obesity has been linked to an increased risk for heart disease, diabetes and cancer.
Obesity arises as a result of behavioral, environmental, and genetic factors.
Genset's comprehensive approach to gene discovery is particularly suited to the analysis of genes associated with this complex common disease. Through this collaboration, Genset is creating a DNA bank of high quality samples to perform genomics research based on association studies using samples from unrelated individuals. Initially, samples from approximately 20,000 patients will be collected over a period of five years. Cardiovascular and heart diseases are currently one of the the leading causes of death in all industrialized countries. Cardiovascular diseases are associated with several phenotypes, such as hypertension, thrombosis, and restenosis, which may need to be treated as separate diseases.