Invitae and Simons Searchlight Partner to Accelerate Research through Data Sharing

– Researchers will now be able to access rich clinical data on patients with rare neurological disease  – 

SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 12, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Invitae (NYSE: NVTA), a leading medical genetics company, today announced a collaboration with Simons Searchlight, an international research program with a goal of accelerating research and improving lives for people with rare genetic neurodevelopmental disorders. This partnership will connect two sets of data – the longitudinal clinical data extracted from medical records through Invitae's Ciitizen, a patient-consented, digital natural history data platform and patient reported outcomes and biospecimens collected by Simons Searchlight. The partnership breaks down data silos and provides a rich and deep dataset that will help accelerate research for rare neurodevelopmental diseases.

"We are excited about this collaboration that will allow researchers to get deep, rich longitudinal data on rare disease patients," said Farid Vij, president and general manager of data for Invitae. "This is intended to help improve treatment, with a goal of ultimately finding a cure for these rare diseases." 

Rare disease patients and caregivers are often asked to participate in many different stand- alone studies to help advance research. Through the combined clinical and patient-reported data in these two datasets, researchers get a deeper understanding of the etiology and progression of disease, sparing additional time, effort and data collection from the patient. 

"Joining forces with Invitae is incredibly powerful for patients with rare diseases," said Jennifer Tjernagel, M.S., senior project manager at Simons Searchlight, Simons Foundation. "Our partnership and the resulting datasets will help improve understanding, diagnosis and treatment of neurodevelopmental disorders, such as STXBP1, SYNGAP1 and others. Having the support of Invitae's Ciitizen platform will help pair patient-reported data with clinical information for in depth data analysis." 

Charlene Son Rigby, president and co-founder of STXBP1 Foundation shared, "We are thrilled to partner with Invitae and Simons Searchlight on this initiative. We believe in the power of data and how important sharing that data can be in the journey to finding a cure for STXBP1 Disorder. Having this kind of collaboration in our toolkit is opening up an entirely new approach for our foundation and our patient community. The combination of Invitae's existing clinical data which will be transitioned into a readily usable format, and Simons' deep information from patients and caregivers, will provide doctors and scientists with an innovative way to accelerate understanding of natural history, while allowing patients and their loved ones to focus on what's most important - their health."

Mike Graglia, Managing Director and Co-Founder of the SynGAP Research Fund stated, "Invitae's Ciitizen is a powerful digital natural history study data platform in the rare disease space. The technology, execution and clinical expertise behind it are exceptional. Simons Searchlight is the most established clinician-led registry in autism and related disorders. The accomplishment of connecting these two platforms is a testament to their collective focus on helping patients. Every single patient who has access to Invitae's Ciitizen platform and Searchlight should consent to join their profiles now."

This agreement expands upon a partnership that was originally launched as a pilot for STXBP1 patients and the STXBP1 Foundation. The relationship allowed consenting patients to link their de-identified Invitae Ciitizen data with the Simons Searchlight database to accelerate understanding of patients with STXBP1 disorder. By expanding focus to additional rare neurological disorders, such as SYNGAP1, SCN2A, SLC6A1 and more, researchers are one step closer to finding the needle in the haystack for patients with these conditions. To learn more about Invitae's Ciitizen data platform and request access to the consented dataset for research, email [email protected]. 

Invitae Corporation (NYSE: NVTA) is a leading medical genetics company, whose mission is to bring comprehensive genetic information into mainstream medicine to improve healthcare for billions of people. Invitae's goal is to aggregate the world's genetic tests into a single service with higher quality, faster turnaround time and lower prices. For more information, visit the company's website at invitae.com.

Simons Searchlight collects medical, developmental, and behavioral data on people living with rare developmental disorders. Participants and their families share this valuable information and experiences so that scientists around the world may increase understanding of these medical conditions and ultimately improve lives. For more information, visit simonssearchlight.org 

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements relating to the availability, features and potential impact of the company's products; the company's belief that it is the first and only laboratory to offer this comprehensive suite of tests for neurodevelopmental disorders in an easily accessible format; the company's belief that its NDD package is affordable and fast; and the company's belief that its NDD package will inform care decisions and treatment plans for patients. Forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially, and reported results should not be considered as an indication of future performance. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: the company's history of losses; the company's ability to compete; the company's failure to manage growth effectively; the company's need to scale its infrastructure in advance of demand for its tests and to increase demand for its tests; the company's ability to use rapidly changing genetic data to interpret test results accurately and consistently; security breaches, loss of data and other disruptions; laws and regulations applicable to the company's business; and the other risks set forth in the company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the risks set forth in the company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2021. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof, and Invitae Corporation disclaims any obligation to update these forward-looking statements.

Contact: Renee Kelley
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SOURCE Invitae Corporation