54gene

54gene is a healthcare startup unlocking the African genome to fuel genetic research and development that may lead to new discoveries and benefit all populations.

54gene was founded in 2019 by Dr. Abasi Ene-Obong to address the significant gap in the global genomics market: Nearly 90% of genetic material used in pharmaceutical research is caucasian. Only 2% is African, despite the fact that Africans and people of African ancestry are more genetically diverse than all other world populations combined. As a result, pharmaceutical research and development is lacking the diverse data that may hold the key to medical discoveries and new healthcare solutions.

Less than 3% of genomic data represented in research is from African populations

As modern humans originating from Africa migrated across the globe, a bottleneck effect was created leaving behind large genetic diversity on the African continent. Much of the genetic variation in Africans has been largely unstudied, yet holds enormous potential in understanding the science behind many diseases and the effect of therapeutics on multiple populations. We are generating insights from analysing sequence variation in the African genome which is expected to potentially power medical breakthroughs for the global population.

Their mission is to deliver on the promise of precision medicine for Africans and the global population, by bridging the disparity gap in genomics data.