Phenome India Project

About 'Phenome India' Project:

• Phenome India-CSIR Health Cohort Knowledgebase (PI-CheCK) is an initiative by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), launched on 7th December 2023.
• Objective: The project aims to develop India-specific risk prediction models for cardio-metabolic diseases including diabetes, liver diseases, and cardiac diseases.
• This is the first-ever pan-India longitudinal health monitoring study focused on cardio-metabolic diseases.
• Participants: Nearly 10,000 participants including CSIR employees, pensioners, and their spouses from across 17 states and 24 cities have contributed to the study.
  • The collected data includes clinical questionnaires, lifestyle and dietary habits, anthropometric measurements, imaging/scanning data, and extensive biochemical and molecular data.
• Importance: The study is crucial for understanding the risk and incidence of cardio-metabolic disorders in the Indian population which may differ from those in Western populations due to ethnic diversity and varied lifestyle patterns.
• Precision medicine initiative: Through this project, CSIR is promoting Predictive, Personalised, Participatory, and Preventive (P4) healthcare, tailored specifically to the Indian phenotypic and genetic profiles.
• About the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR):
  • Established: In September 1942.
  • Headquarters: Located in New Delhi.
  • Funding: CSIR is funded by the Ministry of Science and Technology.
  • Autonomous body: It operates as an autonomous body under the Societies Registration Act, of 1860.
  • Objectives:
  • CSIR is primarily focused on scientific research and development in various fields such as aerospace, biology, chemistry, earth sciences, engineering, and medical sciences.
• Organisational structure:
  • President: The Prime Minister of India (Ex-officio)
  • Vice President: The Union Minister of Science and Technology (Ex-officio)
  • Governing body:
  • Head: The Director-General leads the governing body.
  • Other Ex-officio member: The finance secretary (expenditures).
  • Term duration: Other members serve terms of three years.
  • CSIR Advisory Board:
  • A 15-member body comprising prominent experts from various scientific and technological fields.
  • The board’s role is to provide science and technology insights to the governing body.

Member terms also span three years.

Source: CSIR's 'Phenome India' project hits the target with 10k samples; aims for new era in precision medicine