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IMAGE: 95% of human cell lines used in countless medical research studies are of European descent.
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Credit: Peter Morris for Children's Medical Research Institute
Sydney, Australia; New York City, USA (May 13, 2021)--In a collaborative report published today in
Cell, scientists from Sydney and New York describe the critical worldwide need to improve the diversity of cells used in medical research. Currently, 95% of all human cell lines used in research are of European descent. The authors provide actionable steps that researchers and the biomedical community can take to promote more inclusivity in preclinical and basic science research.
The commentary, "Ancestry Matters: Building inclusivity into preclinical study design," is co-authored by Sophie Zaaijer, PhD, who co-founded FIND Genomics (findgen.bio), a company that aims to improve reproducible cell-based science through its genetic cell tracking software "FIND Cell", and is affiliated with Cornell Tech, New York, and by Amanda Capes-Davis, PhD, from Children's Medical Research Institute (CMRI) in Sydney, Australia. The authors emphasize that lack of action now could have a far-reaching negative impact on the future of precision medicine for people of non-European ancestry.