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The revolution in human genomics, though barely understood by professionals, is about to hit the street, at least for those able to pay about $1,000 for a glance at their entire genome.
The Icelandic company Decode Genetics announced today that it is launching a service called deCODEme, which will assess a person's genome for disease risk, bodily traits like hair and eye color, and ancestral origins. Subscribers have to send in a scraping of cells from inside the cheek and a check for $985.
A similar service, using a smaller but custom-made analytic device, is expected to be announced soon by 23andMe, a Google-financed company founded by Linda Avey, a biotechnology executive, and Anne Wojcicki, a health-care investor who is married to Sergey Brin, Google's co-founder. The 23 in the company's name refers to the 23 pairs of chromosomes in the human genome.
A third company, Navigenics, of Redwood Shores, Calif., is expected to focus on disease genes.
Unlike the present genetic testing and genetic genealogy companies, which look at a few specific genes, the three new services will...