PerkinElmer expanded its Whole Genome Sequencing (WGS) services to families that preserve their cord blood and cord tissue with ViaCord. This launch follows the company’s recent introduction of its clinical WGS services.
Parents that choose ViaCord, PerkinElmer’s cord blood and cord tissue preservation business, now have the opportunity to benefit from a physician-ordered WGS test of their child’s DNA via a simple saliva test. The test examines a broad range of disease-related genes and provides diagnostic findings contributing to pediatric onset diseases. Additionally, the test reports on pharmacogenetic variants used to optimize certain drug selection.
“WGS is another great opportunity for families to identify and prepare for important health concerns, positioning themselves to benefit from the fast moving area of personalized medicine,” said Morey Kraus, chief scientific officer, ViaCord. “We have seen tremendous progress using cord blood stem cells to treat disease, and I expect families who make such health conscious decisions to benefit from WGS as well. Additionally, with the rapid progress we’ve seen with regenerative medicine and gene editing, insights from WGS may be used in the future, in combination with a family’s cord blood and cord tissue, to optimize the design of a treatment plan. This is a very exciting next new step in advancing personalized medicine.”
ViaCord has preserved the umbilical cord stem cells of more than 350,000 newborns and released over 360 cord blood units for treatment and clinical research studies. It has released more than 200 cord blood units for use in the treatment of nearly 80 diseases including acute lymphoblastic leukemia and sickle cell disease and more than 150 cord blood units for use in clinical research studies including for Cerebral Palsy and Autism Spectrum Disorder.