• UCLA Health
  • myUCLAhealth
  • School of Medicine
UCLA Health

UCLA Health
  • About Us
    • What is UCLA Health?
    • Contact Us
    • Your Feedback
    • Accountable Care Organization
    • Awards & Achievements
    • Careers
    • Careers for Physicians
    • Departments - Administrative
    • Departments - Clinical
    • Giving to UCLA Health
    • Health Equity, Diversity & Inclusion
    • In the Community
    • Industry Relations
    • Innovation
    • Leadership
    • News Releases
    • Price Transparency
    • Social Media
    • #TeamLA
    • 340B Program
    Vital SignsLinked Graphic: Subscribe to Health Newsletters
    • Contact
    • Your Feedback
    • Accountable Care Organization
    • Awards and Achievements
    • Careers
    • Careers for Physicians
    • Departments - Administrative
    • Departments - Clinical
    • Giving to UCLA Health
    • Health Equity, Diversity and Inclusion
    • Industry Relations
    • Innovation
    • In the Community
    • 340B Program
    • Leadership
    • News Releases
    • Price Transparency
    • Social Media
    • TeamLA
    • Subscribe to UCLA Health Newsletters
  • Conditions & Treatment
    • Health Library
    • Tests & Procedures
    • Drug Interaction Checker
    • Brain & Nervous System
    • Cancer
    • Children's Health
    • Heart Disease
    • Nutrition & Wellness
    • Pregnancy & Newborns
    • Orthopedics
    • Women's Health
    • Video Library
    • Cancer
    • Cardiovascular
    • Chiropractic
    • Cosmetic Surgery
    • Ear, Nose and Throat
    • Gastrointestinal
    • General Healthcare
    • Neurological
    • Obstetrics/Gynecology
    • See all videos...
    Symptom Checker
    • Video Library
  • Locations

    Hospitals

    • Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center
    • UCLA Santa Monica Medical Center
    • UCLA Mattel Children's Hospital
    • Resnick Neuropsychiatric Hospital
    • Institutes and Centers
    • Take a Virtual Tour

    Medical Offices/Clinics

    • Primary Care
    • Specialty Care
    • Immediate Care
    • Emergency Care
    • Outpatient Surgery Centers
    • Community Cancer Care
    • Pediatric Locations
    • Imaging/Radiology
    • Clinical Labs
    • Pharmacies

    Interactive Map

    interactive map

    • Interactive Map
    • UCLA Medical Plazas
    • Locations Coming Soon
    • UCLA Hospitals
    • Take a Virtual Tour
    • Primary Care Practices
    • Specialty Care Practices
    • Immediate Care
    • Emergency Care
    • Pediatric Locations
    • Outpatient Surgery Centers
    • Clinical Labs
    • Pharmacies
    • Other Locations
    • Interactive Map
    • Coming Soon!
  • Medical Services
  • For Patients & Visitors
    • Directions & Parking
    • Appointments
    • Video Visits
    • Medical Chaperones
    • Admissions
    • Preparing For Surgery
    • Patient Services
    • Security & Parking Services
    • Office of the Patient Experience
    • For International Patients
    • Lodging & Nearby Services
    • Around Westwood
    • Gift Shops & Flowers
    • Patient Greeting Cards
    • Coronavirus Resources
    • Log in to myUCLAhealth
    • Billing and Insurance
    • Medical Records
    • Price Transparency
    • Health Encyclopedia
    • Interactive Patient Education Videos (Emmi)
    • FAQs
    • Calendar of Events
    • Secure Email Messages
    • Health Resources
    • Multimedia
    • Download our Apps
    • Doctor on video visit
    • Open Enrollment
    • Visit our Connect Blog
    • Send a Care Compliment
    • Read Health Publications
    • Vital Signs Newsletters
    • Join a Patient and Family Advisory Council
    • Share your Feedback
    • Contact Us
    • Appointments: Call, Click, Come in
    • Video Visits - Telemedicine
    • Medical Chaperones
    • Admissions Information
    • Advance Directive
    • Directions & Parking
    • Patient Services
    • Medical Records
    • myUCLAhealth
    • Smoke-Free
    • Publications
    • Multimedia
    • Health Resources
    • Around Westwood
    • Lodging
    • Preparing For Surgery
    • Patient-focused Technology Council
    • Health Forms
    • End of Life Option Act: Resources & Materials
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Secure Email Messages
    • Gift Shops
    • Patient Greeting Cards
  • For Healthcare Professionals
    • Referring a Patient
    • Continuing Medical Education
    • Ethics Center
    • UCLA HealthLink
    • Physician to Physician Access Line (P2P)
    • David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
    • Clinical Informatics Fellowship
    • Academic Positions
    • Physician Careers
    • UCLA School of Dentistry
    • UCLA School of Nursing
    • Department of Nursing

    Physician Publications

    • Physicians Update
    • Clinical Updates
    • U Magazine
    • Physician to Physician Access Line (P2P)
    • Physician Careers
    • Clinical Informatics Fellowship
    • Flu Resources for Healthcare Professionals
    • Publications
  • Clinical Research
    • All Clinical Trials
    • COVID-19 Clinical Research
  • Find a Provider
  • UCLA Health
  • myUCLAhealth
  • School of Medicine

News Releases

  1. Home
  2. About Us
  3. News Releases

News Releases

Health and Behavior

UCLA Health-Regeneron Genetics Center research collaboration: Closing in on personalized medical care for patients throughout California

11/16/2020

LOS ANGELES (Nov. 16, 2020) – UCLA Health has entered into a collaborative research agreement with the Regeneron Genetics Center (RGC) to provide whole exome sequencing for 150,000 UCLA Health patients. Led by the UCLA Institute for Precision Health (IPH), this initiative is set to become one of the largest and most comprehensive in the nation and is a key step in bringing genomic medicine to patients across California.

"We've talked for some time about the promise of precision medicine – a time when preventive measures and targeted treatments can be individualized to each patient's genetic makeup. This is a watershed moment in that timeline, a big step toward that reality and a turning point in our research dedicated to changing the way future health care will be delivered for our patients and our community," said Dr. Daniel Geschwind, Gordon and Virginia MacDonald distinguished professor, senior associate dean and associate vice chancellor of Precision Health.

The new exome-sequencing collaboration builds on genotyping work underway with the UCLA ATLAS Community Health Initiative – a large collection of diverse patient blood, saliva and tissue samples being analyzed to help UCLA researchers and clinicians develop and deliver the best care possible. Genotyping, which is targeted to a specific place in the DNA, looks for a predefined set of variants, but whole exome sequencing – like that being performed through the new RGC collaboration – analyzes thousands of protein-coding genes and can provide information on many more potential mutations. Using a needle and haystack analogy, genotyping looks for predetermined needles in a specific location, while exome sequencing searches more of the haystack to detect unexpected needles.

"All patients who participate in this research will be given the opportunity to opt in or out of having actionable results – those that could directly impact their clinical care – returned to them. All patient information and specimens used in the research are 'de-identified' to protect patient privacy and confidentiality. Actionable results, which are verified by a UCLA CLIA-certified laboratory, are only returned to those patients who specifically say they want them," Dr. Geschwind said, adding that about 2% to 3% of tested patients are expected to have a result that will have immediate clinical implications.

The RGC, a wholly owned subsidiary of the science-focused biotechnology company Regeneron, has built one of the world's largest genetics databases, pairing the sequenced exomes and de-identified electronic health records of more than 1 million people, through collaborations with nearly 100 global health care and academic institutions. Building upon Regeneron's strengths in genetics-driven drug discovery, the information secured from this initiative will allow for the elucidation, on a large scale, of genetic factors that cause or influence a range of human diseases.

Three factors make this research effort particularly strong: the depth of UCLA Health's patient care and research expertise; the ethnic diversity of Los Angeles and the Southern California region; and RGC's leading genetics research, sequencing and analysis capabilities.

"Including diverse populations is critical to understanding genetic variability across different populations and developing new treatments that precisely target diseases. Our region's population is a microcosm of the world, which makes UCLA Health an ideal setting for this project with Regeneron," said Dr. John Mazziotta, vice chancellor of UCLA Health Sciences and CEO of UCLA Health. He added that patient confidentiality is a hallmark of this and all UCLA Health clinical research and care.

UCLA Health and RGC officials said the collaboration is expected to have early and ongoing benefits.

"The Regeneron Genetics Center was established to translate the power and promise of genetics research into actionable insights that lead to improved patient care and important new medicines," said Dr. Aris Baras, senior vice president and head of the Regeneron Genetics Center. "The UCLA Health collaboration helps to further deepen and diversify our dataset of exomes from over 1 million deidentified volunteers. Genetic data that better represents the entirety of the human population will lead to better-informed treatment options for all people, which is why we continue to expand this unique drug discovery and development tool, while our collaborators utilize verified information in patients' daily care."

Dr. Kelsey C. Martin, dean of the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, has long been an ardent proponent of UCLA Health's efforts to usher in the new era of precision medicine. "This is an exciting time for clinicians and researchers at UCLA Health and the school of medicine, but more importantly, it's a dramatic advancement for the immediate future of patient care – locally, nationally and internationally," she said – a sentiment shared by other UCLA Health leaders in genetics-based medicine.

"Our collaboration with the Regeneron Genetics Center gets us closer to providing precise, personalized treatments for all cancer patients," said Dr. Beth Karlan, professor and vice chair of women’s health research in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, and director of cancer population genetics at UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center. "Ordering whole exome genetic testing may eventually become as commonplace as ordering routine lab work, and it will give us a chance to offer earlier intervention and better outcomes for our patients."

According to Dr. Geschwind, the results of sequencing may become instrumental in helping to predict risk and guide follow-up testing and care. For those with rare diseases, such findings can be diagnostic, which is the approach taken in the California Center for Rare Diseases at UCLA.

"UCLA Health is recognized throughout the state and nation for its leadership in innovation and high-quality patient care. This collaborative effort with the Regeneron Genetics Center underscores those strengths as we move into this new, exciting chapter of personalized, targeted medical care," said Johnese Spisso, president of UCLA Health, CEO of UCLA Hospital System and associate vice chancellor of Health Sciences.



Media Contact
Media Relations
(310) 267-7022
UCLAHealthNews@mednet.ucla.edu

 
See All News
 


Latest News

Health and Behavior
Study unravels antibiotic resistance in MRSA 'superbug' infections
03/03/2021
Research brief: An approach pioneered at UCLA predicts which methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infections are likely to be cured with antibiotic therapy.

Health and Behavior
Ownership's hidden rules: Q&A with 'Mine!' co-author James Salzman
03/02/2021
In the new book he co-wrote, Salzman reveals the hidden rules that govern who owns what — from the reclining space behind airline seats to HBO passwords.

Health and Behavior
How immigration policies can harm health: Study sheds light on 'public charge' rule
03/01/2021
Many low-income immigrant adults in California avoid public assistance programs for fear of jeopardizing their immigration status, UCLA researchers say.

Health and Behavior
UCLA forms research collaboration with Yuyu Pharma to advance MS treatment
03/01/2021
Leading the project for UCLA are Dr. Rhonda Voskuhl and Professor Michael Jung.

Health and Behavior
Back to class: How to talk to children about returning to school
02/25/2021
Psychologist Melissa Brymer recommends clear and detailed communication about changes children can expect in their classrooms and routines.

Facebook Twitter Instagram Youtube LinkedInWeibo
UCLA Health hospitals ranked best hospitals by U.S. News & World Report
  • UCLA Health
  • Find a Doctor
  • School of Medicine
  • School of Nursing
  • UCLA Campus
  • Directory
  • Newsroom
  • Subscribe
  • Patient Stories
  • Giving
  • Careers
  • Volunteer
  • International Services
  • Privacy Practices
  • Nondiscrimination
  • Billing
  • Health Plans
  • Emergency
  • Report Broken Links
  • Terms of Use
  • 1-310-825-2631
  • Maps & Directions
  • Contact Us
  • Your Feedback
  • Report Misconduct
  • Get Social
  • Sitemap

Sign in to myUCLAhealth

Learn more about myUCLAhealth