DNA testing company 23andMe is hoping to reach millions more users with a new genetic report on diabetes
One in three people are at risk for diabetes. So 23andMe set out to develop the first direct-to-consumer genetic test to assess whether its users have a higher likelihood of developing type 2 diabetes, which is the most common form of the disease.
The company has been around for more than a decade, but said its new diabetes report is the first of its kind. More than 30 million Americans , or about 9 percent of the population, has diabetes. Only about 23 million of them have been diagnosed, studies show, and the rest remain unaware that they have the disease. Most people with diabetes have type 2, which means they don't respond to insulin as they should.
23andMe, which was co-founded by Wojcicki, is backed by just shy of $800 million in venture capital funding from investors ranging from Alphabet to the international drug maker GlaxoSmithKline. It has sold its DNA tests for both ancestry and health to millions of people, but it has other ways of making money, including partnerships with drug companies. It also has its own drug discovery unit under veteran pharma executive Richard Scheller.
Moreover, testing for diabetes risk is not as simple as some other health conditions, where a single genetic variant can have a major impact. Rather, there are lots of small variations across the human genome that add up to a higher risk in some people than others. And lifestyle factors, like diet and exercise, play a huge role.
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