FinnGen contributes to COVID-19 host genetics initiative

Insights into how to better understand and treat COVID-19 are desperately needed. Given the importance and urgency in obtaining these insights, it is critical for the scientific community to come together around this shared purpose.
covid-19 virus

COVID-19 host genetics initiative brings together the human genetics community to generate, share and analyze data to learn the genetic determinants of COVID-19 susceptibility, severity and outcomes. Such discoveries could help to generate hypotheses for drug repurposing, identify individuals at unusually high or low risk, and contribute to global knowledge of the biology of SARS-CoV-2 infection and disease.

From biobanks with existing significant genetic data and active connections to health systems, there is an opportunity to rapidly develop a genetic study on susceptibility and severity. For example, in Finland with the national network of biobanks covering each hospital district, it is possible to acquire almost 'real-time' updates on COVID-19 status of individuals already in FinnGen.

FinnGen is proud to be involved in this important initiative and we were among the first studies contributing data for the global meta-analysis. The first results based on 917 cases from five study cohorts were made publicly available end of April. New meta-analyses will be performed regularly.