Tag Archive for: genomic medicine

Francis Collins

Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D. from NIH: The future of genomic medicine and research funding opportunities

Kurt Newman and Francis Collins

Genomic medicine, diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), a world post-COVID-19 and pediatric research funding were among the topics discussed during the “Special Fireside Chat” keynote lecture at the 2021 Children’s National Hospital Research, Education and Innovation Week.

Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D., director at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), is well known for his landmark discoveries of disease genes and his leadership of the international Human Genome Project, which culminated in April 2003 with the completion of a finished sequence of the human DNA instruction book.

The President and CEO of Children’s National, Kurt Newman, M.D., joined Dr. Collins during the “Special Fireside Chat” keynote lecture. Dr. Newman posed several health care-related questions to Dr. Collins over the course of 30 minutes. Dr. Collins’s responses shed light on what it takes to advance various research fields focused on improving child health and develop frameworks that advocate for DEI in order to foster a more just society.

Q: You have been involved with genomic medicine since its inception. You discovered the gene causing cystic fibrosis and led the Human Genome project. What do you see as the future of genomic medicine, especially as it relates to improving child health?

A: Thank you for the question, Kurt. First, I wanted to say congratulations on your 150th anniversary. Children’s National Hospital has been such a critical component for pediatric research and care in the Washington, D.C., area, and at the national and international levels. We at the NIH consider it a great privilege to be your partner in many of the things that we can and are doing together.

Genomic medicine has certainly come a long way. The word genomics was invented in 1980, so we have not been at this for that long. Yet, the success of the Human Genome Project and the access to cost-effective tools for rapid DNA sequencing have made many things possible. It took a lot of effort, time and money to discover the gene that causes cystic fibrosis. Kurt, if you look at what we did, while it was rewarding, it was a challenging problem that occupied the hearts of the scientific community in 1980. Now, a graduate student at Children’s National that has access to DNA samples, a thermal cycler, a DNA sequencer and the internet could do in about a week what it took us a decade and with 50 people.

We have been able to rocket forward as far as identifying the genetic causes of 6,500 diseases, where we know precisely the molecular glitch responsible for those conditions. While most of those are rare diseases, it leads to the opportunity for immediate diagnosis, which used to be a long and troubled journey.

DNA sequencing has increasingly become an essential tool in newborns, especially when trying to sort out puzzling diagnosis for specific syndromes or phenotypes that are not immediately clear. Additionally, DNA sequencing significantly impacted clinical care in cancer because it made it possible to look at the mutations driving the malignancy and its genetic information that can lead to interventions. This approach is going forward in the next few years in ways that we can see now. Although I am a little reluctant to make predictions because I have to be careful about that, it may be possible to obtain complete genome sequences that can be yours for life and place them into the medical record to make predictions about future risks and choices about appropriate drugs. This path costs less than any imaging tests.

Q: The racial justice movement that was brought back to the forefront this past year has, once again, reaffirmed that this country has so much more work to do in order to end systemic racism. You have been at the forefront of promoting diversity, equity and inclusion in research and at the NIH. What do you and the NIH plan to do further DEI efforts in research and in general so that we can be a more just and equitable society?

A: I appreciate you raising this, Kurt. Diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) is an issue where everyone should be spending a lot of time, energy and passion. You are right. 2020 will be remembered for COVID-19. I also think it will be remembered for the things that occurred around the killing of George Floyd, and the recognition of the very foundation that is still infected by this terribly difficult circumstance of structural racism. I convened a group of about 75 deep thinkers about these issues, many of them are people of color from across the NIH’s different areas of activities. I asked the group to come forward with a bold set of proposals. This effort is how the program UNITE came together to work hard on this, which is now making recommendations that I intend to follow. We are determined to close that gap and pursue additional programs that will allow us to be more successful in recruiting and retaining minority groups, for example. We need to do something with our health disparity and research portfolio as well to ensure that we are not just looking around the edges of the causes for racial inequities. We are digging deeper into what the structural racism underpinnings are and what we can do about it. I am particularly interested in supporting research projects that test intervention and not just catalog the factors involved. We have been, at times, accused and maybe rightly so of being more academic about this, and, less kindly, we have been accused of admiring the problem of health disparities as opposed to acting on it. We are ready to act.

Q: COVID has affected us all in so many ways. Could you tell us what this past year has been like for you? Also, how is the NIH preparing for a soon-to-be post-COVID pandemic?

A: This is the time to contemplate the lessons learned as everyone knows that the last worst pandemic happened over a century ago. One thing that maybe will vex us going forward, which we already started to invest in a big way, is this whole long COVID syndrome, also referred to post-acute sequelae, to understand precisely the consequences and mechanisms like Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C). Before moving to the next pandemic, we must think about how we will help understand those who suffer from long COVID syndrome. As far as the broader lessons learn, Kurt, we must expect that there will be other pandemics because humans are interacting more with animals, so zoonosis is likely to emerge. We need to have a clear sense of preparation for the next one. For instance, we are working on this right now, but we need to have a stronger effort to develop small molecules of anti-viral drugs aimed at the major viral classes, so we do not have to start from scratch. We also need clinical trial networks warm all the time, ready to go and to learn how valuable public partnerships can be to get things done in a hurry.

Editor’s Note: The responses in this Q+A have been modified to fit the word count.

Debra Regier

U.S. leads the pack in medical genetics and genomic medicine

Debra Regier

Debra S. Regier, M.D., Ph.D., a pediatric geneticist who is the director of education in the Rare Disease Institute at Children’s National Health System.

It long has been recognized that traits can be passed down from parents to offspring in humans, just as occurs with other species. But medical genetics – the scientific field that covers the diagnoses and management of heritable diseases – didn’t get its start until recently. Only in the past century or so have researchers devoted significant resources to better understanding the patterns of inheritance or syndromes that have a genetic cause.

Although this research has taken place around the world, the United States is well established as a leader in this field, say authors of an article published in the July 2017 issue of Molecular Genetics & Genomic Medicine.

This article covers the history of the field, demographics of genetic conditions, legislation that relates to genetic disease and its burdens and highlights a long list of American researchers who have genetic diseases named after them. The list, comprising 86 scientists in a diverse array of fields including pediatrics, pathology, dermatology and oncology, is a testament to the devotion of these researchers to understanding a specific condition or, sometimes, group of related conditions.

Their dedication, often spanning the entirety of their career, contributed to the wealth of knowledge now available that’s improved the outcomes of many individuals with these diseases, says article co-author Debra S. Regier, M.D., Ph.D., a pediatric geneticist who is the director of education in the Rare Disease Institute at Children’s National Health System.

“Because these researchers spent their lives characterizing these disorders,” Dr. Regier says, “we can use that information when we find a child who fits the scheme of a particular disorder to tell families what they can expect – and in many instances – explain how best to treat them.”

Beyond tracking heritable disease traits through families, modern genomics also has led to the ability to recognize specific genes that cause various disorders, speeding the process of diagnosis and intervention.

“There are about 7,000 rare diseases, and sometimes it’s hard to know where to start with patients because it’s unclear which one they have,” Dr. Regier says. “By doing genetic testing, we can give families information, offer a prognosis and start treatments that have helped children who came before them with the same genetic mutation.”

Dr. Regier speculates that U.S. leadership in this field is largely due to the presence of large academic centers that are devoted to the study of genetic disorders, like Children’s National. Such centers give researchers dedicated time and space to better understand genetic diseases, both on a basic and an applied level. Despite the country’s stature as a frontrunner in this research arena, the United States has a relatively small medical genetics community, which researchers can use to their advantage.

“If I find a child with a rare genetic disorder, I can call up the world expert on this condition to share and receive information,” Dr. Regier adds. “That’s relatively rare in science, but it happens all the time in our field because we’re so small.”

Although the United States has contributed to many medical genetics and genomic medicine advances that have helped patients worldwide, the history of the field in this country wasn’t always laudable, Dr. Regier says. The article also addresses the eugenics movement during the early 20th century. For example, in 1907, Indiana became the first state to enact involuntary sterilization legislation, an effort to remove “flawed” individuals from the gene pool that was followed by similar laws in several other states. In 1924, Virginia enacted a law that allowed eugenic sterilization of people with intellectual disabilities that was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1927.

After atrocities committed by the Nazis during World War II, when the repercussions of these policies became more clear, these laws were gradually abolished.

More recent legislation, the article’s authors write, aims to protect individuals from discrimination for genetic disorders. Thus far, 35 states have laws on the books protecting against employment discrimination, and 48 states passed legislation against health insurance discrimination based on genetic information. Twenty-four states endorsed statutes that limit the use of genetic information for other types of insurance, including life, long-term care and disability.

The article is the first of a two-part series and was followed Nov. 26, 2017 by a second article addressing the current status of prenatal testing, reproductive options and reproductive law in the United States, as well as newborn screening, genetic services, rare disease registries, and education and training in genetics.

“We can take pride in our progress, while still acknowledging that we have a long way to go in this field,” Dr. Regier says.