Application of Relational Database Management System and Object-Oriented Programming in Pharmacogenomics Based Drug Development Process

摘要

The recently published draft of the sequence of the human genome is just a first step in the understanding of our individual genetic makeup and its relationship to phenotypes such as disease or drug response. One way to look at the diversity of the genome is by way of variation that has been introduced into the human genome via natural evolution. The traditional craft shop approach to gene discovery and disease association is no longer feasible when dealing with high throughput genomic information. Using state-of-art sequencing and genotyping technology, Genaissance has created an extensive catalog of SNPs and associated haplotype markers for thousands of pharrnaceutically relevant genes. To manage this amount of data and to deliver it to scientists, clinicians, and business decision-makers, the bioinformatics group has built an information system that uses a combination of cutting edge and robust relational database tools and object-oriented programming. The system was designed using the MVC (model, view, and control) concept and methodology and was deployed in a three-tier client server mode. The system handles hundreds of thousands of human gene variation markers and millions of genotypes in an efficient way and delivers the information in a user-friendly manner to both internal and external users. It is currently being used in several drug evaluation studies.