Thoughts 19 Apr 2008 05:20 pm
Did you know your DNA was the world’s information?
The Google’s recent investment in Navigenics is proof it wants an early stake in direct-to-consumer genetic screening.
The Internet giant received heavy press in 2007 when it invested at least $4.4 million (BusinessWeek.com, 11/29/07) in a genetic screening company, 23andMe, that was started by Anne Wojcicki, the wife of Google co-founder Sergey Brin, and her business partner.
Calling 23andMe an example of a company “generating a whole new batch of information of interest to a broad range of people,” Pederson says Google wants to extend its capabilities into genetic testing.
For a spit of saliva and $2,500, Navigenics delivers your genetic test results to your computer screen with your genetic likelihood for 18 medical conditions, from Alzheimer’s to rheumatoid arthritis to several types of cancer.
“We are interested in supporting companies and making investments in companies that bolster our mission statement, which is organizing the world’s information and making it universally accessible and useful,” Google spokesman Andrew Pederson says.
The companies say that this is to help patients and doctors, and it probably is.
However, who has/will have access to the database?
How long before this information is used by insurance companies?
And why should we trust anyone who makes their living disseminating information, and currently catalogs every search we make?
23andMe, Inc. operates as a personal genetics company in California. It builds DNA analysis technologies to enable individuals to access, explore, and understand their genetic information.
Navigenics, Inc. offers personalized genetics-based consumer health and wellness services. It provides clinically based knowledge to help clients take positive steps to live healthily.