Indigenous Genomics
ALIGN - Prophecy Study
2023 saw the establishment of the South Australian node of the Australian Alliance for Indigenous Genomics (ALIGN), on the back of the successful 2021 Genomics Health Futures Mission grant to advance the benefits of Genomic Medicine for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Key priorities of the SA node, which is partially led by SAGC, revolve around extensive multi-omics analyses in the PROPHECY (Predicting Renal, Ophthalmic and Heart Events in the Aboriginal Community) study, Aboriginal-led policy development for Indigenous Genomics projects in SA and capacity development of a SA Indigenous genomics workforce. To help facilitate and guide this work, a South Australian Aboriginal Governance Committee has been established to provide Aboriginal insight and oversight into culturally safe genomics research practices so that we can work towards prioritising community benefit, health and wellbeing. The PROPHECY study is the largest longitudinal study of diabetes in Aboriginal Australians ever conducted. PROPHECY aims to understand why Aboriginal people get type II diabetes at a much younger age, and why they experience associated complications such as kidney disease and blindness at a much younger age than non-Aboriginal Australians.
A multi-omics approach will be applied to the PROPHECY study, encompassing DNA, RNA and methylome sequencing, as well as proteomics and metabolomics. Dr. Marlie Frank joined SAGC in 2023 as the SA Indigenous Genomics Coordinator. This is a joint appointment between SAGC and Aboriginal Health Equity, SAHMRI. Marlie has family connections through both the Kaurna and Yorta Yorta people and is an early career researcher, with a PhD in genomics, she will play a central role in co-ordinating activities, including sample analysis, workshops and scholarships as the representative of the SA node. Building an Indigenous genomics workforce and leaders of the future is a key priority for ALIGN in South Australia.
A major achievement in 2025 was the completion of transcriptomic sequencing for the Prophecy project, which investigates Type 2 diabetes in South Australian Aboriginal communities. In partnership with The Kids Research Institute, we sequenced the RNA of 1,255 blood samples, generating a rich dataset that has now been returned to collaborators for analysis. This successful collaboration demonstrated the value of strong institutional partnerships and established a foundation for future Indigenous genomics projects supported by SAGC.
