Sowing doubts about deCode's gene pool

OXFORD - Researchers opposed to deCode Genetics Inc.'s use of the Icelandic population to discover disease genes last week published a non-peer reviewed correspondence in Nature Genetics, arguing that the Icelandic population was no more homogeneous than those of other European countries.

deCode (DCGN, Reykjavik, Iceland), which last month raised $198.7 million in its IPO, operates on the premise that it can identify disease genes more rapidly through analysis of the Icelandic population based not only on its low heterozygosity, but also on the existence of extensive genealogical records, extensive medical records and the cooperation of most of the population. ...