According to the decree of the Government of the Russian Federation, by September 1, 2025, the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation must create and put into operation a national database of genetic information.
At the end of 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law on the legal basis for the functioning of the state information system "National Database of Genetic Information". The law shall come into force on September 1, 2024.
The National Database will not include personalized data of a person. It is about a database of genetic information for the entire diversity of biospecimens, including plants, animals, wildlife microorganisms, agricultural plants and farm animals, industrial microorganisms and viruses.
According to Vladimir Kaymonov, director of the Genetico Center: "We consider it important to work on systematizing knowledge, accumulated genetic information and access to such databases of scientists, researchers and doctors. In 2021, the Genetico Center and its partners created RUSeq for doctors and scientists. RUSeq is the first Russian database of genetic variants, which is actively used by geneticists to make diagnoses. In addition, after the law comes into force, we can expect an increase in requests for genetic research from scientific organizations, which should also have a positive impact on the development of the industry".
Today, Genetico cooperates with more than 30 scientific organizations, including Moscow State University, the Institute of Molecular Genetics of the National Research Center "Kurchatov Institute", the Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology and others.
As part of its scientific activities, Genetico conducts research on various materials. For example, in 2023, for a project to develop modern approaches to creating technologies for sustainable cultivation and reproduction of valuable marine aquatic organisms, a study of Far Eastern crabs was conducted. To study the diversity structure of complex aggregates of closely related species, genetic analysis of ground squirrels, jerboas and shrews was carried out in Genetico. The genome of the Far Eastern leopard, listed in the Red Book, was identified for a project to improve the natural population of rare animals.
Genomic databases provide researchers with access to enormous amounts of genetic information. As for the development and creation of a national database of information about the human genome, it can become an important tool for the development of new drugs, methods of prevention and treatment of genetic diseases.
RUSeq, the first Russian open database of genetic variants (polymorphisms, mutations) and their occurrence in the Russian population, was created by the Genetico Center and the Serbalab laboratory in collaboration with the Institute of Bioinformatics. The RUSeq database is based on statistical processing of sequencing (identification) results of more than 6,000 human DNA samples. However, the genetic information of separate individuals is not available in the database. Currently, laboratories continue to work on sequencing new samples and expanding the RUSeq database. Genetics and bioinformatics doctors are now actively using this database to clarify the frequency of rare mutations in the population and to make a diagnosis.
Genetico Center (CGRM, MOEX: GECO) is a company of the Artgen Biotech group (MOEX: ABIO), a resident of Skolkovo and Medtech Technopark. Genetico works in the field of medical genetics and genetic research, introducing innovative solutions into healthcare practice for the diagnosis, prevention and treatment of genetic and socially significant diseases. Genetico has its own international-level sequencing laboratory, where research is conducted on high-performance next generation DNA sequencing (NGS). NGS is an ideal tool for fast and efficient genetic analysis, which, in addition to medical ones, allows solving a wide range of scientific problems in demand for research purposes, as well as in many fields of knowledge, including biotechnology and agriculture.
On April 25, 2023, Genetico held an IPO on the Moscow Exchange, the company's shares are included in the list of securities of the high-tech economy sector.