NFS SESAM

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The NCCR sesame - S wiss E tiological S tudy of A djustment and M ental Health - the Swiss National Science Foundation is a long-term study to investigate the causes of mental illness. The study was started in 2005 with the aim of scientifically accompanying around 3000 children from the 20th week of pregnancy for 20 years, as well as their parents and grandparents. As soon as the children are of legal age, they can give their consent to genetic testing .

The project was based at the University of Basel and had financial resources of CHF 22.8 million; the contribution of the National Fund amounted to 10.2 million.

The main study was officially canceled on January 22, 2009. The main reason was the low participation of pregnant women, so that the recruitment goal could not be achieved. In addition, it was found that the ethical and legal national bases of such studies are still insufficiently clarified. The 10 sub-studies of the research focus, which run independently of the main question, are still being completed.

In addition, criticism of the study itself had been expressed since the beginning of the project, for example by opponents of genetic engineering ; The main point of criticism was that the people examined - the children - could not agree to participate due to a lack of maturity; or that large pharmaceutical companies made financial contributions to the project. Proponents, on the other hand, value the simple necessity of such studies, for example because the cause of depression has not yet been satisfactorily clarified using other strategies.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ "National research focus SESAM officially discontinued" https://www.sbfi.admin.ch/sbfi/de/home/aktuell/medienmitteilungen/archiv-medienmitteilungen/archiv-sbf.msg-id-24973.html

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