Degenics today announced its relaunch as DeBio Network, in an expansion from DNA and genetics testing into bioinformatics. The company is building a decentralized platform for medical and bioinformatics data that will provide synergy between these organizations while guaranteeing user anonymity and sovereignty throughout the biomedical data pipeline.
Degenics was launched in January 2021 as a blockchain-based, anonymous-first DNA testing platform, in collaboration with Blocksphere, an IT company in Indonesia that provides blockchain solutions. Envisioned as a “VPN for your DNA”, Degenics was designed to prevent genetic data misuse, privacy and security violations, and the practice of selling genetic data without consent.
Pandu Sastrowardoyo, the initiator of DeBio Network, believes that distributed ledgers or blockchains, combined with sovereign credentials and decentralized storage, can solve these problems.
“With Debio Network, we are building a decentralized platform for your personal medical needs, starting with genetics,” she said. “Our concept allows synergy between labs of all scales while guaranteeing user anonymity and sovereignty at every step of the genomic data science workflow – from sample collection, data storage, to report generation.”
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many small-scale labs have upgraded their genetic testing facilities through investment in PCR and next-generation sequencing. DeBio Network enables laboratories to repurpose these facilities to offer personal genetic testing with a “marketplace” paradigm and join the global genetic testing market.
Expert Advisors Join Team
To support the expanded scope of the project, experts will join DeBio Networks as advisors:
- Dr. Agus Mutamakin, M.Sc: Dr. Mutamakin has 15 years of medical information technology experience as the Chief Information Officer at the National Referral Hospital and as a health information systems consultant. He is also involved in the Data and Information Compartment of the Indonesian Hospital Association and a member of the Health Informatics Technical Committee of the Indonesian National Standard. He has also been invited as a guest lecturer in several master’s degree programs in Hospital Management in Indonesia.
- Dr. Hendy Wijaya, M.Biomed: Dr. Wijaya is a researcher specializing in biochemistry, nutrition, and metabolic diseases. He has researched aging, nutrition, metabolic diseases, and genetics. He regularly lectures and teaches biochemistry and physiology on one of the campuses in Indonesia. He is also a research consultant in a food supplement company.
- Karlia Meitha, Ph.D.: Meitha is a researcher adept in the field of molecular biology. She has an interest in genome editing and small RNA applications in the pursuit of a sustainable life. She regularly writes in the field of plant physiology and molecules. Currently, Meitha leads the biotechnology master program to create a generation of biotechnology experts who have creative thinking.
- Dr.rer.nat Marselina Irasonia Tan: Dr. Tan is a researcher specializing in cell and molecular biology, particularly in biomedical sciences. She has research experience in the fields of cancer biology, immunology, and whole-genome sequencing. She is currently active as a lecturer and regularly lectures about immunology, cell biology, cancer biology, animal development, and tissue engineering.
- Popi Septiani, Ph.D.: Septiani is a specialist researcher in the field of genomics and bioinformatics. She has extensive experience in genomic data analysis and transcriptomics in the field of medical and agricultural sciences. She has worked in the field of biotechnology for an agricultural science company. She is currently active as a lecturer, lecturing subjects regarding molecular genetics and bioinformatics in Indonesia’s campuses.
- Dr. Theza Pellondo’u, Sp.KF: Dr. Pellondo’u has knowledge and experience in the field of medical forensics, medicolegal, and bioethics. He has helped solve several criminal cases, doctor-patient disputes, and ethical problems in both the fields of medicine and education. He was the Chairman of the Ethics and Legal Committee in a private hospital in Jakarta. He is currently active as the Head of Department and lecturer in forensic medicine and medicolegal, and bioethics at a private medical faculty in Jakarta. He also practices as a forensic and medicolegal specialist in the same city.
Sovereign Biomed through Blockchain
DeBio Network is building the platform on Substrate, a modular system powered by Parity Technologies that makes it easy to build customized blockchains. Substrate also allows seamless integration with Polkadot, an interoperable blockchain protocol developed by Parity.
DeBio intends to launch a Polkadot para chain later this year and is partnering with projects in the Polkadot ecosystem including KILT Protocol. DeBio will use KILT as the underlying accreditation infrastructure, enabling labs and biomedical facilities to embed credentials on medical test results, genome sequences, and other data exchanged during inter-lab collaborations. This structure would grant users the required anonymity and control over their data.
At a leading blockchain conference ETHDenver in February 2021, DeBio / Degenics was named Winner, Best IPFS Use for Identity and United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) winner for its fully anonymous home DNA testing marketplace. In March, Ms. Sastrowardoyo was named an Indonesian Woman Leader by the World Women Leadership Congress.
About DeBio Network
DeBio is an anonymous-first, decentralized platform for medical and bioinformatics data. We are building a decentralized platform for your personal medical needs, starting with genetics. Our concept allows synergy between labs of all scales while guaranteeing user anonymity and sovereignty at every step of the genomic data science workflow – from sample collection, data storage, to report generation. Debio is also researching privacy computing in an initiative to safeguard the safety of users on its data marketplace.
