First Step in Government-Wide Pilot Project to Build 'Bio Big Data'... "Expectations for New Drug Development"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bo-kyung] The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the Ministry of Science and ICT, and the Ministry of Health and Welfare are collaborating to officially launch the national bio big data construction pilot project, which is being implemented across ministries, this year.

To this end, a consortium consisting of a steering committee, an operations committee, a secretariat, an expert committee, and five government and government-funded research institutes will be formed to ensure the smooth operation of the project.

During the two-year pilot project period starting this year, more than 20,000 clinical information and genomic data will be collected through the recruitment of rare disease patients and linkage with leading projects.

For rare diseases, considering patient accessibility and medical experience, 16 rare disease cooperation institutions nationwide will be designated to collect clinical information and specimens from rare disease patients.

For projects that have already secured clinical information or genomic data, a 'Leading Project Expert Committee' will be formed to establish linkage criteria with the bio big data construction pilot project.

Genomic data will be produced through whole genome sequencing and variant analysis by genomic analysis institutions and the Korea National Institute of Bio Resources (KOBIC), respectively.

The collected clinical information and produced genomic data will, in principle, be shared and utilized by the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, the Korea National Institute of Bio Resources (KOBIC), and the Korea Institute of Science and Technology Information (KISTI).

Data will be provided to researchers in industry, academia, research institutes, and hospitals through the Clinical Analysis Research Network (CIRN) to support various studies, and diagnostic reference reports will help in the diagnosis and treatment of rare disease patients.

Furthermore, the project plans to support the localization of materials, parts, and equipment related to genomic data analysis, which currently depend on overseas sources, as well as the development of new drugs and medical device products, and to utilize the data for expanding related services such as digital health devices linked to personal health information.

To alleviate concerns about personal information leakage due to the collection of sensitive clinical information and genomic data, unique IDs will be assigned at the collection and production stages, and a closed network will be established to ensure thorough data management.

Through this pilot project, South Korea is expected to officially begin building bio big data like major countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom, laying the foundation for the biohealth industry, which has significant first-mover advantages.

The plan for this pilot project was decided at the first meeting of the 'National Bio Big Data Construction Pilot Project Steering Committee' held on the 12th.

The steering committee consists of 20 members from the medical community, academia, industry, and patient organizations, including Chairman Song Si-young, a professor at Yonsei University Severance Hospital.

At the meeting, reports and discussions were held on ▲ the composition and operation plan of the National Bio Big Data Construction Pilot Project Steering Committee ▲ the plan for the National Bio Big Data Construction Pilot Project ▲ designation and operation plans for rare disease cooperation institutions.

Chairman Song Si-young stated, "Through the construction of bio big data, the provision of precision medicine-based medical services and new drug development are expected," and added, "We will establish the main project construction plan after evaluating the pilot project outcomes and collecting broad opinions from experts in various fields."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.