Practice English Speaking&Listening with: How 23andMe Is Studying Role Genetics Might Play In COVID-19 | TODAY

>> THAT HITS CLOSE TO HOME FOR

US.

THANK YOU, AL.

>>> AS DR. FAIR SHOWS US ONE OF

THE MANY MYSTERIES WITH THIS

VIRUS IS WHY IT AFFECTS PEOPLE

SO DIFFERENTLY.

THE POPULAR DNA TESTING SERVICE

23 AND ME IS TRYING TO FIND OUT.

JOINING US THIS MORNING WE HAVE

THEIR CEO ANN WAJITSKI, THANK

YOU FOR TALKING WITH US THIS

MORNING.

>> OF COURSE.

>> LET’S DIG INTO THE NUMBERS

HERE.

LAST MONTH YOUR COMPANY ASKED

YOUR 12 MILLION CUSTOMERS TO SEE

IF THEY’VE EXPERIENCED COVID

SYMPTOMS AND FROM THAT NUMBER

YOU HAD A HALF MILLION PEOPLE

WHO RESPONDED, 7,000 OF WHOM

WERE COVID POSITIVE AND YOU’VE

SINCE STUDIED THEIR DNA.

WHAT HAVE YOU FOUND?

>> WE HAVEN’T FOUND ANYTHING

YET.

WE HAVE A LOT OF INTERESTING

LEADS, IN, YOU KNOW, SOME

POTENTIAL GENETIC IDEAS BUT WHAT

WE REALLY NEED ARE MORE SAMPLES

OF INDIVIDUALS WHO HAVE BEEN

COVID-19, WHICH IS WHY WE’RE

EXPANDING THE STUDY TODAY,

SAYING ANYONE WHETHER THEY’RE A

CUSTOMER OR NOT, WE’LL GIVE THEM

A KIT IF THEY’VE BEEN

HOSPITALIZED SO THEY CAN JOIN

THE 23 AND ME COVID-19 RESEARCH

STUDY.

THE MAIN THING WE NEED IS MORE

CASES AND WE’LL FIND WHETHER OR

NOT SOMEBODY IS GENETICALLY

HIGHER RISK.

>> WELL, YES, BECAUSE OBVIOUSLY

7,000 PEOPLE CAN’T ENOUGH DATA.

IF YOU NEED MORE PEOPLE TO DRAW

MORE MEANINGFUL CONCLUSIONS,

THERE ARE A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO

MAY WANT TO HELP BUT THEY’RE

CONCERNED ABOUT PRIVACY.

HOW ARE YOU HANDLING THAT?

>> IT’S PART OF A STANDARD

CONSENT WE HAVE FOR PEOPLE.

PEOPLE HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO

DECIDE IF THEY WANT TO

PARTICIPATE.

IF THEY WANT TO PARTICIPATE THEY

CAN OPT IN TO RESEARCH.

IN THIS PARTICULAR CASE WITH

COVID-19 BECAUSE WE’RE GIVING

OUT TESTS WE WANT PEOPLE TO BE

PART OF THE RESEARCH.

IF PEOPLE ARE GOING TO JOIN WE

NEED THEM TO BE PART OF

RESEARCH.

WE’RE DOING A COVID-19 STUDY AND

WE NEED TO BE ABLE TO LOOK AT

THE SURVEY RESPONSES ABOUT WHAT

THEY SAID HAD HAPPENED AS WELL

AS WE NEED TO LOOK AT THEIR DNA.

BUT FIRST AND FOREMOST WITH THE

COMPANY WE’VE ALWAYS SAID THAT

WE HAVE NO FOUNDATION OF THE

COMPANY IF WE DON’T HONOR

PEOPLE’S PRIVACY.

SO PRIVACY AND CHOICE IS ALWAYS

A TOP PRIORITY FOR THE COMPANY.

>> WHAT ARE YOUR RESEARCHERS

LOOKING AT, SPECIFIC GENES,

PATTERNS, HERITAGE, OPEN ENDED,

ARE YOU PARTNERING WITH ANY

OTHER RESEARCH TEAMS?

>> WHAT WE REALLY WANT TO FIND

IS KIND OF THIS MYSTERY THAT ALL

OF US ARE SEEING ON A DAILY

BASIS.

YOU KNOW, WHY IS IT THAT SOME

PEOPLE GET THIS DISEASE, AND

THEY HAVE IT, YOU KNOW, AND IT’S

SO SEVERE, AND WHY IS IT THAT

SOME PEOPLE CAN BE EXPOSED TO IT

AND THEY NEVER EVEN GET IT.

SO WE’RE LOOKING FOR GENETICS

ABOUT SEVERITY, AND

SUSCEPTIBILITY.

WE’RE LOOKING ACROSS YOUR ENTIRE

GENOME, A NUMBER OF GENE

CANDIDATE IDEAS THAT WE HAVE A

HYPOTHESIS ABOUT.

WE’RE LOOKING ACROSS YOUR ENTIRE

GENOME, AND WE’RE OPEN TO

PARTNERING WITH ANY OTHER

ACADEMIC CENTER OR GROUP OUT

THERE.

WE’VE TALKED TO A NUMBER OF

GROUPS.

WHAT’S REALLY GREAT HERE IS THAT

I SEE EVERY SINGLE MAJOR MEDICAL

CENTER COMING TOGETHER TO FIGURE

OUT HOW TO TEAM UP BECAUSE IT’S

IN THE BEST INTEREST OF ALL OF

US TO FIND OUT, ARE THERE

GENETICS THAT MAKE SOME PEOPLE

REALLY, REALLY SICK WITH THIS,

AND SOME PEOPLE, YOU KNOW,

REALLY SUSCEPTIBLE.

>> MORE QUESTIONS WE CAN ANSWER

THE BETTER, CERTAINLY, THANK YOU