Prechter Bipolar Genetics Repository

As part of the Heinz C. Prechter Bipolar Genes Project, the Prechter Bipolar Genetics Repository has been established to study and conquer bipolar disorder. This large-scale Genetics Repository is collecting DNA samples from people who have been diagnosed with bipolar disorder as well as healthy individuals. The University of Michigan is collaborating on this effort with our independently approved partner sites: Johns Hopkins, Stanford, Cornell, and Penn State Universities.

Together, these investigators are working with their research teams on specific studies to collect phenotypic information, or observable traits, on thousands of bipolar individuals and on control participants. They are also collecting biological samples by examining the blood and extracting genetic material, specifically the DNA, from the participants.

The Genetics Repository enables pilot studies to address bolder questions. Studies that are based on new findings will be able to proceed more expeditiously. The Genetics Repository is a vitally important tool to rapidly accelerate genetic research, one of the most significant areas of study today.

The goal of the Prechter Bipolar Genetics Repository is to one day provide confidential, coded DNA samples and clinical information to scientists worldwide to accelerate knowledge breakthroughs.

 

"It is essential that this knowledge is shared with other scientists. We cannot work along parallel paths; we must come together to find the cure for bipolar disorder."

Waltraud E. Prechter
Founder, Prechter Bipolar Research Fund