ToMMo established after the Great Eastern Earthquake so far has analyzed whole genomes of 5000 healthy local people and about 100,000 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). Since 2016, CiRA and ToMMo started collaborative research and established healthy iPS cells from somatic cells of participants in cohort surveys linked with genomic and health information. Differentiated into various differentiated cells such as neurons and hepatocytes in order to create differentiated cells with the same genome as the participant, genome wide association analysis (GWAS) was conducted to examine the correlation between SNP and health information. The concept is to evaluate disease development risks, drug efficacy and toxicity risks using differentiated cells, and to use this healthy control group for iPS cell research on diseases. CiRA and ToMMo have now successfully established iPS cells on a trial basis from frozen peripheral blood mononuclear cells of six cohort participants. The iPS cells have all satisfied the morphological characteristics of iPS cells, and have expressed the relevant undifferentiated marker genes (NANOG, Otc3 / 4) and transcription factors.

CiRA/Kyoto University news release, April 17, 2019