UGenome Named #2 Biotech Startup in Arizona – F6S
UGenome AI, a pioneer in genomic platforms to fuel personalized medicine, was rated as the #2 Biotech Startup in the state of Arizona for 2025!!!
https://www.f6s.com/ugenome-ai
UGenome AI Announces Partnership with Jura Health for Expediting Diagnoses and Treatment Timelines for Rare Disease Patients
January 13, 2025 08:00 a.m. Mountain Standard Time
TUCSON A.Z. – UGenome AI, a pioneer in genomic platforms to fuel personalized medicine, today announced a strategic partnership with Jura Health, Inc. to leverage UGenome technology for rare disease patient diagnosis and personalized plans. This collaboration will empower those with rare genetic disorders to learn about their pharmacogenomic profile faster, shorten diagnosis and treatment timelines, and support disease outcomes.
In the U.S. alone, around 30 million people – roughly 1 in 10 – live with a rare disease. Almost 80% of rare diseases are genetic in origin, and over half have a pediatric onset2. Rare disease patients often visit multiple physicians, many seeing 16 specialists on their diagnostic journey3, and receive incorrect diagnoses before they get an accurate genetic diagnosis, delaying treatment and impacting their quality of life. In addition to the ramifications for patients, the health care system accrues $220,000 per rare disease patient in avoidable costs from the extended diagnostic journey4.
“We are excited to partner with Jura Health, as our pharmacogenomic profiling tool can provide insight into drug responses for their rare disease patients, helping to get patients information on treatment options based on their genomic profile. In particular, our platform empowers rare disease patients and their providers with information on drug-affecting genes so they can see how specific treatments might interact based on their genomic profile,” said Zachary Brooks, PhD, founder and CEO of UGenome AI. “By using our platform, Jura Health can inform rare disease patients about their genetic makeup and minimize off-target effects, driving reliable outcomes with reduced unintended consequences and unmatched precision.”
More than 95% of patients have at least one actionable drug-gene interaction that could affect drug-related outcomes5, making personalized genetic profiling a key component of providing top-tier care to patients. With increasing opportunities to incorporate pharmacogenomics, patients stand to see improvements in their care and treatment outcomes.
“This collaboration will further hone our whole genome sequencing (WGS), genetic counseling, and next step support, providing an even more personalized plan for individuals facing the complexities of rare genetic disorders,” said Chris Moore, CEO of Jura Health. “The average time to a diagnosis for a rare disease patient is 6 years. Jura Health aims to reduce that to 1 month, and this partnership with UGenome AI will significantly expedite and improve the care journey for these patients and support the providers who serve them.”
About UGenome AI
UGenome AI is a startup biotech company focusing on developing genomics software. UGenome AI is advancing genomics analysis and helping patients receive personalized care, faster. Our products stem from our personalized reference genome and pharmacogenomics tools to help patients receive personalized treatments within weeks, not years. For more information, please visit www.ugenome.bio.
About Jura Health, Inc.
Jura Health, a privately held Public Benefit Corporation, is dedicated to improving the lives of individuals with rare diseases through advanced genetic testing, comprehensive counseling, and unwavering advocacy support. By leveraging cutting-edge technology and a patient-centered approach, Jura Health strives to provide accessible and equitable healthcare solutions for all. Jura Health is the first in the country to offer a comprehensive platform addressing the overwhelming unmet need for diagnosis and ongoing support currently experienced in the rare disease community. For more information, please visit www.jura.health.
Contacts
For UGenome AI Inquiries:
Zachary Brooks
zachbrooks@ugenome.io
For Jura Health, Inc. Inquiries:
Chris Moore
For Media:
Emma Bardin
Pharmacogenomics Offers New Frontier For Precision Medicine
Imagine a set of twins who have a family history of migraines. They both go to the pharmacy and pick up the migraine medication prescribed by the doctor. The prescription works for one twin, but the second still has a migraine. A variety of factors drive such a phenomenon: how quickly the person metabolizes the drug, if the twin has a sensitivity to that medication, and other factors … Read More …
Revolutionizing Primary Care: The Role of Pharmacogenomics and AI in Personalized Medicine
Pharmacogenomics (PGx), the study of how genetic profiles impact an individual’s responses to medication, has already begun to help healthcare providers (HCPs) optimize care through its capacity to preemptively enhance drug efficacy, minimize adverse side effects, and improve patient experiences. This rapidly growing field marries bioinformatics and pharmacology and represents a transformative new era of precision medicine and highly personalized treatments, one that serves patients by supporting clinicians to better predict therapeutic responses and more accurately optimize drug dosages … Read more …
Startup targets .1% of human genetics for personalized, precision-based therapies
Precision medicine is often talked about as an ideal, but in practice, it is still an early-stage field. Today, healthcare providers are a step closer to being able to precisely target therapies for those who will benefit most based on their genetic makeup thanks to a new technology developed at the University of Arizona and being advanced into the world through Tucson startup UGenome … Pharmacogenomics (PGx), the study of how genetic profiles impact an individual’s responses to medication, has already begun to help healthcare providers (HCPs) optimize care through its capacity to preemptively enhance drug efficacy, minimize adverse side effects, and improve patient experiences. This rapidly growing field marries bioinformatics and pharmacology and represents a transformative new era of precision medicine and highly personalized treatments, one that serves patients by supporting clinicians to better predict therapeutic responses and more accurately optimize drug dosages … Read more ..
Biotech & Lifescience CEO Series Zachary S. Brooks, PhD – UGenome Founder & CEO
Bullpen @Bio2024 Interview with Zachary Brooks of UGenome AI
Learn more about UGenome’s Personalized Medication Service, ProPEx, or contact UGenome. You can also find case studies for UGenome’s bioinformatics services Metabolite Identification, Bone Metastasis Risk Analysis in Breast Cancer, Survival Analysis with gene signatures in cancer
#ugenome, #ugenomeai, #genetics, #pharmacogenetics, #genomicmedicine, #sequencing, #datascience, #lifesciences, #bioinformatics, #biostatistics, #pharma, #bullpen, #NVIDIAInception, #foundershub, #pgxresearch, #ethics, #ethicalchallenges, #healthdisparities
My View: A memo to Gov. Hobbs on supporting Arizona entrepreneurs
https://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/news/2023/02/16/arizona-governor-support-entrepreneurs.html
F e b 1 6 , 2 0 2 3 , 1 :0 0 p m M S T
Dear Governor Hobbs,
Congratulations on your electoral victory. I encourage you to use this pivotal moment to make Arizona the biotech startup state.
As an entrepreneur (and Arizonan), I know we can do this, but it will take targeted policy and education reforms, and investments. Groups such as the Arizona Commerce Authority, Arizona Bioscience (AZBio), Arizona Technology Council (ATC), the Arizona Commerce Authority (ACA), Tech Launch Arizona, Skysong along with community colleges and funds such as Xcellerant will be vital to improve Arizona as a biotech startup destination.
The most critical initiative is to put $10 million into the Health Innovation Trust to make a meaningful impact. Investing in the fund will make Arizona a destination for biotech startups. Likewise, investment in Arizona’s universities, community colleges will be critical to build on Phoenix’s success in life sciences jobs growth. Reducing student and family education debt will free people to start new companies. Launching a career burdened by debt is like overloading a Ford F-150 before embarking on a cross-country trip, making it hard to start a business, a family or own a home. As you probably know, most biotech startups fail during the dreaded “Valley of Death,” or the period in a startup’s life in which it operates but generates no income.
We can look to scientists at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California who reproduced the sun’s energy, or fusion energy. This advancement wouldn’t take place without viewing education, technology, and economic growth the cells that bind for this generation and the next.
In my experience launching a biotech startup, I have learned lessons for how to make Arizona the petri dish of choice for biotech startups over other states. Governor Hobbs, here are three recommendations:
- Empower Arizona Commerce Authority CEO Sandra Watson to prioritize and support biotech with a focus on bioinformatics. This will be a challenge, but the state of Arizona must support past investment in this high stakes and high growth industry.
- Elevate groups such as AZBio, Flinn Bioscience, the ATC, and the ACA to build on the Arizona Bioscience Roadmap. Work with the bioscience causes in the Arizona Senate to advance the Health Innovation Trust Fund. A way to start is to invest in bioinformatics workforce training. Why? It is cost-effective and scalable, producing high-paying jobs faster.
- Think of everyone as data scientist. Every profession requires data science skills. From job searches conducted almost exclusively through online algorithms, to analyzing candidates, we all need to access and interact with data effectively.
Train everyone with data science skills. From facilities operators to farmers, every job needs to understand the basics visualization and meaning making, central to data.
Treatment means data. Personalized medicine mean that doctors and patients will need to comb through datasets to make informed decisions. Healthy patients cost less money.
Devices means data. From FitBit, Strava, pacemakers, and insulin pens, the devices we use give us insights to make better micro decisions with macro effect. Teach for a lifetime. Whether finishing high school online or getting skills training, learners need to learn online.
A ready group of entrepreneurs in the bioinformatics field stand ready to help move Arizona into the bioinformatics future. Please let me know if you want to set up an advisory group to explore this future.
Your election represents a new and exciting chapter in Arizona history.
Zachary S. Brooks PhD – Founder & CEO – UGenome AI.