Oh Snap. Spit in a Tube, Share Your DNA

Hmm, I wonder how many people in Frederick County just got this email?

Personal Genome Project July 26, 2011Dear PGP Participant, We beginning to collect saliva samples from enrolled PGP participants.

Saliva Collection Opportunity for 100 volunteers We are looking for 100 PGP participants who are willing to receive a saliva collection kit in the mail and use it to return several saliva samples as directed within a specific time period (Aug 1 – Aug 15 2011).  We plan to ship 100 kits on Monday August 1, 2011.  We ask that volunteers return the saliva samples in the pre-paid mailing package no later than Monday August 15th. If we have more than 100 volunteers sign-up for this pilot study, we will prioritize PGP participants who satisfy the following criteria: (a) participants who have uploaded existing genetic data to their public profile (b) participants who have completed the Participant Survey, available here: https://my.personalgenomes.org/users/participant_survey (c) participants who reside in the continental United States Saliva samples submitted to the PGP will be used for a variety of research purposes, some not foreseeable at the time of collection.  Currently, the PGP plans to study to saliva samples in several ways, including: telomere measurement, whole genome sequencing, and epigenetic profiling. Any saliva you submit may be analyzed for these or other purposes, as described in the PGP consent form.  We also plan to evaluate low-cost saliva collection kits and protocols for working with saliva samples.  This saliva collection is in cooperation with TeloMe, a company interested in performing telomere analysis on PGP participants. Telomere analysis, genome sequences, and other data will be shared with PGP participants and made publicly available according to the procedures outlined in the consent form.  As with other forms of specimen analysis in the PGP, results are not guaranteed and the analysis may take months, or possibly a year or more, to complete. Timeline: July 26th (Tuesday): Announcement email sent to all enrolled PGP participants. July 28th (Thursday): Deadline for PGP participants to volunteer for this saliva collection opportunity. July 29th (Friday): Email applicants and let them know whether they have been selected. August 1st (Monday):  Begin to mail 100 saliva kits via USPS standard mail. August 15th (Monday): We request participating volunteers to return saliva samples no later than Monday, August 15th. We plan to expand saliva collection to everyone in the research study as soon as we evaluate our performance with processing these 100 samples.  So, if you are not selected for this round, there will be additional opportunities in the near future. Do you wish to volunteer for this effort?  You can learn more and sign-up here: https://my.personalgenomes.org/pages/studies

Thanks for your time and support of the PGP. Sincerely,   PGP Staff

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