Phenome India-CSIR Health Cohort Knowledgebase (PI-CheCK)

Recently CSIR announced the successful conclusion of the first phase of the ‘Phenome India-CSIR Health Cohort Knowledgebase (PI-CheCK).

To mark this significant milestone, CSIR organized a special event, ‘Phenome India Unboxing 1.0’ at the National Institute of Oceanography (NIO), Goa on 3rd June.
NIO is a multi-disciplinary oceanographic research institute founded in 1966 following the International Indian Ocean Expedition (IIOE) in the 1960s.
For the first time, a pan-India longitudinal study is conducted to develop an enhanced prediction model for cardiometabolic disease, especially diabetes, liver diseases and cardiac diseases.
Such a study is vital as these diseases (cardio-metabolic) have both genetic and lifestyle factors that contribute to risk.

It is known for its cutting-edge R&D knowledge base in diverse S&T areas, is a contemporary R&D organization
It was established as an autonomous body by the government of India in 1942 to promote scientific knowledge and boost industrialization and economic growth.
Headquarters: New Delhi

It was launched by CSIR on 7th December 2023.
It assesses risk factors in non-communicable (cardio-metabolic) diseases within the Indian populace.
The Cardiometabolic syndrome includes a cluster of conditions including abdominal obesity, insulin‐resistant glucose metabolism, dyslipidemia, and increased blood pressure.
PI-CHeCK is a kind of study that captures longitudinal molecular, biochemical and organ scanning data and integrates it with cutting-edge AI/ML models to enable the development of targeted diagnostic and prognostic technologies, thus paving the path for Precision Medicine in India
This unique initiative has already enrolled nearly 10,000 participants, who have volunteered to provide comprehensive health data.

To understand and determine the risk factors that might lead to complex metabolic disorders.
Creation of a biorepository i.e., storage of biological samples for future research.
A step towards developing India-specific normative values/equations for various health parameters and modalities not available in literature.
A step towards the development of diagnostics by utilizing the knowledge generated through these assays and analyses.
To catalyze similar initiatives across the country, thereby ensuring that risk prediction algorithms are more accurate and representative of India’s diverse genetic and lifestyle landscape.