In an effort to study the interactions between genomics and Parkinson’s disease, Cleveland Clinic has joined the ongoing efforts of 23andMe to recruit Parkinson’s patients to participate in research by contributing their DNA to a research database and completing online surveys about their health.

Currently, little is known about how genes relate to Parkinson’s disease, the effectiveness of treatments, or the natural course of the disease. The goal of this collaborative research effort—which also has support from the Michael J. Fox Foundation, the National Parkinson Foundation, and the Parkinson’s Institute—is to discover how genes and the environment influence Parkinson’s disease.

The project is part of Cleveland Clinic’s personalized health care initiative, which aims to drive discoveries that allow medical professionals to better predict risk for disease and response to therapies, with the ultimate goal to improve patient care.

Patients who volunteer for the study will be asked to provide a saliva sample for DNA analysis and agree to participate in online surveys about their experience with Parkinson’s. 23andMe hopes to enroll 10,000 participants total; Cleveland Clinic expects to enroll about 1,000 patients toward this goal.

Patients who take part in the study will be enrolled in 23andMe’s Parkinson’s Disease Research Community, which will allow them to engage online with other Parkinson’s patients and provides full access to 23andMe’s Personal Genome Service.

Participation is free and voluntary. Those who take part in the study will be identified by a unique code, not by their names, in order to protect their privacy. Participants can choose to receive a report summarizing the genes identified in their DNA, though these findings will not be placed in their medical record.

To facilitate participation in the registry, Cleveland Clinic has detailed information and dedicated computer portals set up at locations where Parkinson’s patients are most likely to be visiting, including main campus in Cleveland and the Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health in Las Vegas. Two additional locations, Cleveland Clinic’s Lakewood Hospital (Lakewood, Ohio) and Cleveland Clinic Florida (Weston, Fla), will be enrolling patients as well.

Source: Cleveland Clinic