National Biobank

Why in News?

Recently Minister for Science and Technology inaugurated the National Biobank' and India's own Longitudinal Population Data study at CSIR-IGIB (Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology).

• A National Biobank is a large-scale repository designed to collect, store, and manage biological samples (like blood, tissues, DNA) and associated health data (clinical, lifestyle, genomic).
• Launched under - The Phenome India Project.

• Objectives- The Biobank will serve as the backbone of a nationwide cohort study, collecting comprehensive genomic, lifestyle.
• Collection of data - A long-term, data-rich study tracking the health trajectories of individuals over several years.
• Involves the collection of clinical data from 10,000 individuals across India.
• Tailored version - The Indian version is tailored to capture the country’s unique diversity, across geography, ethnicity, and socio-economic backgrounds.
• Supports early treatment - This initiative will aid early diagnosis, improve therapeutic targeting.
• Treatment of complex diseases - In the fight against complex diseases such as diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular ailments, and rare genetic disorders.
• Individualised treatment - Indian may receive individualised treatment tailored to their genetic makeup, lifestyle, and environment.
• Disease Recognition - It will help scientists uncover disease patterns, gene-environment interactions, and response to therapies within the Indian context.
• Self-reliance – A bold step toward India’s self-reliance in healthcare data.
• Prospect – It has the potential to evolve into a global benchmark like the UK Biobank.

Reference

PIB| National biobank