
23andMe Adds Therapeutics Unit
The company will build an R&D team to find promising drug targets with genetic information submitted by customers in its database.
23andMe announced on Mar. 12, 2015 that it is launching a new drug discovery and development division using the human genetic data the company has collected. 23andMe’s research platform is, according to a statement, the “world’s largest consented, re-contactable database.” The new business unit will be led by Richard Scheller, PhD, who was formerly the executive vice-president of research and early development at Genentech. Dr. Scheller will be in charge of recruiting scientists and researchers for the division beginning in April 2015.
The Google-supported company had previously entered into deals with Pfizer and Genentech, allowing the companies to use the information in their customer-submitted repository of information. Prior to the announcement, it had also been selling genetic tests directly to consumers.
In 2013, FDA told the company,
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