Genetic Database That Matches Drugs to Illnesses May Speed New Therapies
A new database that matches drugs to illnesses based on how human genes respond to the medications may speed the discovery of new therapies. The Web-based tool, developed in a collaboration between two universities, has already revealed promising leads for treating cancers.
The system, called the Connectivity Map, was developed by researchers at the Broad Institute, a joint project of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University. It works like an Internet search engine, said Justin Lamb, the project’s leader at the institute. Users can, for example, submit a list of genetic changes associated with a particular illness. The program will return a list of drugs ranked by how well they would restore a normal pattern of genetic activity.
An initial version of the program, based on more than 160 approved and potential drugs, is now freely available to scientists at other institutions, Mr. Lamb’s team reports in the September 29 issue of Science. The researchers built this initial reference collection by measuring genetic responses in human cells treated with each compound.
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