NATIONAL GENOMIC GRID (NGG)

Related Topics: Science &Technology, National Cancer Tissue Biobank (NCTB)

News

Government has announced its plan to set up a National Genomic Grid, which will study genomic data of cancer patients from India.

National Genomic Grid

• The grid to be formed will be in line with the National Cancer Tissue Biobank (NCTB) set up at the Indian Indian Institute of Technology, Madras.
• The initiative will be taken forward based on the standard operating procedures set by IIT Madras and guidance from ICMR.
• The grid will have four parts, with the country divided into east, west, north and south.

Significance

• It will collect samples from cancer patients to study genomic factors influencing cancer and identifying the right treatment modalities for the Indian population.
• The genomic samples will help researches to have India-specific studies on cancers.
• NGG will enhance the cancer research to the next level and make treatment viable for people of different economic classes.

About National Cancer Tissue Biobank (NCTB)

• It is a state-of-the-art non-profit community based tissue biobank.
• It is a joint initiative of Department of Science and Technology (DST), Government of India and Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IITM), Chennai.
• The NCTB is functioning in close association with the Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR).
• NCTB, which has the capacity to stock 50,000 genomic samples from cancer patients, already has samples from 3,000 patients.
• The government is planning to set up the National Genomic Grid in the same style with pan-India collection centres by bringing all cancer treatment institutions on board.