Established | 2011 |
---|---|
Research type | Translational research |
Field of research | gene editing, gene therapy, genomics |
Director | Brian Brown |
Address | 1425 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10029-6501 |
Location | New York City |
Affiliations | Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Mount Sinai Hospital, New York |
Website | icahn |
The Icahn Genomics Institute is a biomedical and genomics research institute within the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City. Its aim is to establish a new generation of medicines that can better treat diseases afflicting the world, including cancer, heart disease and infectious pathogens. To do this, the institute’s doctors and scientists are developing and employing new types of treatments that utilize DNA and RNA based therapies, such as CRISPR, siRNA, RNA vaccines, and CAR T cells, and searching for novel drug targets through the use of functional genomics and data science. The institute is led by Brian Brown, a leading expert in gene therapy, genetic engineering, and molecular immunology. [1]
The institute’s primary goal is to improve patient care through the use of gene, cell and nucleotide therapies. To achieve this goal, the Institute is formed of a cross-disciplinary mix of clinicians and scientists that include physicians treating patients with novel gene therapies in the Mount Sinai Health System, biologists developing and testing new drugs and drug platforms, and data scientists working to identify causative agents of disease that can be targeted for therapy by building predictive models that better characterize disease. These models are constructed with multiple layers of biological data, including gene expression, metabolite, DNA, and protein information, and are combined with phenotypic and clinical data, predictive modeling, and probabilistic analysis to try to elucidate the complex mechanisms of disease. [1]
Research at the institute falls into six areas: [1]
Scientists from the institute published a paper in Nature Genetics in 2012 demonstrating the ability to derive enough information from non-DNA sources to identify individuals whose supposedly anonymized biological data is stored in large research databases. [2] The authors reported that measuring RNA levels in tissue allowed them to infer a genetic barcode that could be used to match other materials to that same individual. This was noteworthy as validation of existing concerns among genomics scientists that it may not be possible to prevent the identification of an individual from genetic data even when that data is meant to be anonymous.
In a PLoS Biology paper, institute founding director Eric Schadt led a research team that utilized six different types of data (metabolite concentration, gene expression, DNA variation, DNA-protein binding, protein-metabolite interaction, and protein–protein interaction) to reconstruct networks involved in cell regulation. [3]
In 2013, institute scientists published a paper in the journal Cell reporting findings from a network-based study of late-onset Alzheimer's disease. The researchers constructed gene regulatory networks and discovered a neural structure involved in a pathway associated with onset of the disease. [4]
In January 2014, scientists from the institute’s Division of Psychiatric Genomics including Pamela Sklar published two papers in the journal Nature that explored the genetic complexity of schizophrenia. [5] [6] The exome sequencing studies of populations in Bulgaria and Sweden revealed that the disorder is likely caused by a lot of rare genetic mutations rather than a few common mutations. [7] [8] The projects also established the world’s largest database on schizophrenia.
In May 2014, institute faculty published proof-of-concept findings to support the clinical development of RNA interference therapy for acute hepatic porphyria which led to the development of givosiran as the first therapy for acute hepatic porphyria, approved by the FDA in 2019. [9] [10] Institute researchers and clinicians also led the Phase 3 clinical trials for givosiran. [11]
Institute director, Brian Brown, developed a new CRISPR imaging technology called Perturb-map capable of identifying regulators in tumor microenvironments. [12] [13] [14] The findings were published in Cell in 2022. [15] Perturb-map was used in this study to identify the cytokine interferon gamma, IFNg, and the tumor growth factor beta receptor, TGFbR, as regulators of two pathways significantly affecting tumor growth, architecture, and immune cell recruitment. [16] [17] [18]
Institute faculty member Samir Parekh published results of a clinical trial in Blood Advances (2022) focused on second-line treatments for relapsed multiple myeloma patients. [19] The study reported over an 80% response rate in patients treated with T-cell redirection therapy with chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cells and bispecific antibodies (BiAbs) as a second-line treatment after a first-line immunotherapy treatment had failed. [20] [21]
Also in 2022, Brian Brown's research published results of a study targeting solid tumors with chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cell therapy, which had previously only been successful in blood cancers. [22] The researchers engineered CAR T cells to target and destroy macrophages, an immune cell supporting tumor growth, in ovarian, lung, and pancreatic tumors in mice models, which successfully shrunk tumors and prolonged survival. [23] [24]
Institute faculty member Ivan Marazzi's research team published a Nature paper in 2022 identifying the immune system's role in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). The study found immune system dysfunction in patients and mice with ALS, and showed a high concentration of CD8 T cells in spinal cord and blood. The study was among the first publications to describe the immune system's involvement in neurodegeneration. [25] [26]
The institute was formed in 2011 as the Institute for Genomics and Multiscale Biology, as part of Mount Sinai's Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences. Eric Schadt was named as founding director. [27] The institute was renamed in 2012 when philanthropist Carl Icahn pledged $200 million to its parent organization, the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. [28]
In 2012, the institute received certification for the first CLIA-approved next-generation sequencing lab in New York City. [29] [30]
Institute faculty Andrew Kasarskis, Michael Linderman, George Diaz, Ali Bashir, and Randi Zinberg taught the first class in which Mount Sinai medical students were able to fully sequence and analyze their own genomes. [31] [32]
Former institute member Joel Dudley was named one of the 100 most creative people in business in a 2014 list compiled by Fast Company. [33] The magazine said it chose Dudley "for splicing information with quality medical care."
In 2014 the institute, in collaboration with Sage Bionetworks, announced a new project aiming to genotype up to 1 million people with the goal of identifying the rare biological mechanisms that keep people healthy when they have genetic variants that should cause disease. [34] [35] The Resilience Project aimed to scan the genomes of healthy people age 30 and older who contribute their DNA to the effort with an initial focus on 127 diseases. Scientists anticipated that finding protective mechanisms for Mendelian diseases would be more straightforward than finding ones for complex or multifactorial diseases. [36] [37] Based on an analysis of publicly available data from 600,000 human genomes, scientists involved in the Resilience Project estimated that one person in 15,000 has a mechanism protecting against disease-causing genetic variants. [38]
In 2022, institute faculty Pei Wang and Avi Ma'ayan established a Proteogenomic Data Analysis Center funded by the National Cancer Institute. The center's goals included identification of biomarkers and drug targets for cancer and development of computational tools for drug discovery. [39] [40]
Gene therapy is a medical technology that aims to produce a therapeutic effect through the manipulation of gene expression or through altering the biological properties of living cells.
A genetic screen or mutagenesis screen is an experimental technique used to identify and select individuals who possess a phenotype of interest in a mutagenized population. Hence a genetic screen is a type of phenotypic screen. Genetic screens can provide important information on gene function as well as the molecular events that underlie a biological process or pathway. While genome projects have identified an extensive inventory of genes in many different organisms, genetic screens can provide valuable insight as to how those genes function.
Human genetic enhancement or human genetic engineering refers to human enhancement by means of a genetic modification. This could be done in order to cure diseases, prevent the possibility of getting a particular disease, to improve athlete performance in sporting events, or to change physical appearance, metabolism, and even improve physical capabilities and mental faculties such as memory and intelligence. These genetic enhancements may or may not be done in such a way that the change is heritable.
A designer baby is a baby whose genetic makeup has been selected or altered, often to exclude a particular gene or to remove genes associated with disease. This process usually involves analysing a wide range of human embryos to identify genes associated with particular diseases and characteristics, and selecting embryos that have the desired genetic makeup; a process known as preimplantation genetic diagnosis. Screening for single genes is commonly practiced, and polygenic screening is offered by a few companies. Other methods by which a baby's genetic information can be altered involve directly editing the genome before birth, which is not routinely performed and only one instance of this is known to have occurred as of 2019, where Chinese twins Lulu and Nana were edited as embryos, causing widespread criticism.
Virotherapy is a treatment using biotechnology to convert viruses into therapeutic agents by reprogramming viruses to treat diseases. There are three main branches of virotherapy: anti-cancer oncolytic viruses, viral vectors for gene therapy and viral immunotherapy. These branches use three different types of treatment methods: gene overexpression, gene knockout, and suicide gene delivery. Gene overexpression adds genetic sequences that compensate for low to zero levels of needed gene expression. Gene knockout uses RNA methods to silence or reduce expression of disease-causing genes. Suicide gene delivery introduces genetic sequences that induce an apoptotic response in cells, usually to kill cancerous growths. In a slightly different context, virotherapy can also refer more broadly to the use of viruses to treat certain medical conditions by killing pathogens.
Viral vectors are modified viruses designed to deliver genetic material into cells. This process can be performed inside an organism or in cell culture. Viral vectors have widespread applications in basic research, agriculture, and medicine.
The Cancer Genome Project is part of the cancer, aging, and somatic mutation research based at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute in the United Kingdom. It aims to identify sequence variants/mutations critical in the development of human cancers. Like The Cancer Genome Atlas project within the United States, the Cancer Genome Project represents an effort in the War on Cancer to improve cancer diagnosis, treatment, and prevention through a better understanding of the molecular basis of the disease. The Cancer Genome Project was launched by Michael Stratton in 2000, and Peter Campbell is now the group leader of the project. The project works to combine knowledge of the human genome sequence with high throughput mutation detection techniques.
The interleukin-1 receptor antagonist (IL-1RA) is a protein that in humans is encoded by the IL1RN gene.
Robert J. Desnick is an American human geneticist whose basic and translational research accomplishments include significant discoveries in genomics, pharmacogenetics, gene therapy, personalized medicine, and the treatment of genetic diseases. His translational research has led to the development of the enzyme replacement therapy (ERT) and the chaperone therapy for Fabry disease, ERT for Niemann–Pick disease type B, and the RNA Interference Therapy for the Acute Hepatic Porphyrias.
Genome editing, or genome engineering, or gene editing, is a type of genetic engineering in which DNA is inserted, deleted, modified or replaced in the genome of a living organism. Unlike early genetic engineering techniques that randomly inserts genetic material into a host genome, genome editing targets the insertions to site-specific locations. The basic mechanism involved in genetic manipulations through programmable nucleases is the recognition of target genomic loci and binding of effector DNA-binding domain (DBD), double-strand breaks (DSBs) in target DNA by the restriction endonucleases, and the repair of DSBs through homology-directed recombination (HDR) or non-homologous end joining (NHEJ).
Eric Emil Schadt is an American mathematician and computational biologist. He is founder and former chief executive officer of Sema4, a patient-centered health intelligence company, and dean for precision medicine and Mount Sinai Professor in Predictive Health and Computational Biology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. He was previously founding director of the Icahn Institute for Genomics and Multiscale Biology and chair of the Department of Genetics and Genomics Sciences at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.
The tumor microenvironment is a complex ecosystem surrounding a tumor, composed of cancer cells, stromal tissue and the extracellular matrix. Mutual interaction between cancer cells and the different components of the tumor microenvironment support its growth and invasion in healthy tissues which correlates with tumor resistance to current treatments and poor prognosis. The tumor microenvironment is in constant change because of the tumor's ability to influence the microenvironment by releasing extracellular signals, promoting tumor angiogenesis and inducing peripheral immune tolerance, while the immune cells in the microenvironment can affect the growth and evolution of cancerous cells.
Andrew Kasarskis is an American biologist. He is the Chief Data Officer (CDO) at Sema4. He was previously CDO and an Executive Vice President (EVP) at the Mount Sinai Health System in New York City and, before that, vice chair of the Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences and Co-director of the Icahn Institute for Genomics and Multiscale Biology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. Kasarskis is known for taking a network-based approach to biology and for directing the first medical school class offering students the opportunity to fully sequence and analyze their own genomes.
The Network of Cancer Genes (NCG) is a freely accessible web resource of genes that, when altered in their sequence, drive clonal expansion of normal tissues or cancer. The project was launched in 2010 and has reached its 7th release in 2022. In 2023 the additional annotation of cancer drivers that interact with the tumour immune microenvironment was added. NCG7.1 reports information on 3,347 cancer drivers and 95 healthy drivers. Of these, 596 are also TIME drivers. NCG7.1 also reports the system-level properties and the associated publications of each driver, as well as a list possible false positives. NCG7.1 enables advanced searches on the primary anatomical site, cancer type, type of sequencing screens and literature supports.
Human germline engineering is the process by which the genome of an individual is edited in such a way that the change is heritable. This is achieved by altering the genes of the germ cells, which then mature into genetically modified eggs and sperm. For safety, ethical, and social reasons, there is broad agreement among the scientific community and the public that germline editing for reproduction is a red line that should not be crossed at this point in time. There are differing public sentiments, however, on whether it may be performed in the future depending on whether the intent would be therapeutic or non-therapeutic.
The Resilience Project is a project, undertaken by the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in collaboration with Sage Bionetworks.
CRISPR gene editing is a genetic engineering technique in molecular biology by which the genomes of living organisms may be modified. It is based on a simplified version of the bacterial CRISPR-Cas9 antiviral defense system. By delivering the Cas9 nuclease complexed with a synthetic guide RNA (gRNA) into a cell, the cell's genome can be cut at a desired location, allowing existing genes to be removed and/or new ones added in vivo.
Miram Merad is a French-Algerian professor in Cancer immunology and the Director of the Marc and Jennifer Lipschultz Precision Immunology Institute (PrIISM) at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai (ISMMS) in New York, NY. She is the corecipient of the 2018 William B. Coley Award for Distinguished Research in Basic Immunology and a member of the United States National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Medicine.
The Fanzor (Fz) protein is an eukaryotic, RNA-guided DNA endonuclease, which means it is a type of DNA cutting enzyme that uses RNA to target genes of interest. It has been recently discovered and explored in a number of studies. In bacteria, RNA-guided DNA endonuclease systems, such as the CRISPR/Cas system, serve as an immune system to prevent infection by cutting viral genetic material. Currently, CRISPR/Cas9-mediated's DNA cleavage has extensive application in biological research, and wide-reaching medical potential in human gene editing.
The Innovative Genomics Institute (IGI) is a nonprofit scientific research institute founded by Nobel laureate and CRISPR gene editing pioneer Jennifer Doudna and biophysicist Jonathan Weissman. The institute is based at the University of California, Berkeley, and also has member researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, UC Davis, UCLA, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Gladstone Institutes, and other collaborating research institutions. The IGI focuses on developing real-world applications of genome editing to address problems in human health, agriculture and climate change.