Your Genome, in your hands
We envision a world where everyone can own and understand their own genomic data privately. Our mission is to create “citizen scientists”, who can track and interpret their own genomic data over time, leading to better individual decision making for the sake of their health.
Our Mission
Have you ever wanted to obtain your own DNA data without having to share it with anyone else?
Do you want to be able to understand and discover the implications behind your DNA sequence privately?
We want every person to be able to understand their own genomic data, regardless of background knowledge or education. This is why it is our mission to create “citizen scientists” – to build a gene-literate citizenry that can privately own their own genomic data and trust science.
The Citizen-Scientist Sequencing Initiative
science, compassion, collaboration
Genomics is moving quickly into patient care, but most people have no practical way to hold and study their own data. Many consumer genetic testing services keep customers’ data on their own systems. CSSI takes a different approach: participants hold their own sequencing data and learn to analyze it themselves.
CSSI is run by miRcore, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Since 2011, miRcore has taught high school students transcriptome research using publicly available data. In 2023, we piloted CSSI with high school, college, and medical students, who were the sole custodians of their whole-exome sequencing data. Since 2023, high school students in our Sequencing Your Genome summer camp have also analyzed their own exome data.
Now Enrolling: CSSI 2026–27 for Adults
We are now opening CSSI to adults who know biology or medicine well and are curious about their own genome, but who:
- worry about privacy;
- are not familiar with computational tools or with interpreting sequencing data; or
- are not familiar with applying machine learning in medicine.
What you will do:
- Collect a cheek-cell sample at home and return it to miRcore by December 4, 2026.
- Session 1 (Saturday, February 27, 2027, virtual): learn the University of Michigan high-performance computing (HPC) system, receive your whole-exome data, and process it.
- Session 2 (Saturday, March 13, 2027, virtual, 3 hours): download your data to your own computer, view it in IGV, compare your variants with ClinVar through the UCSC Genome Browser, and predict your ABO blood type with a machine learning tool that runs offline.
Fee: $750, including whole-exome sequencing, both education sessions, and three months of University of Michigan HPC access.
Enrollment: 20 participants, U.S. residents age 18 or older. Registration closes November 15, 2026, or when 20 participants have registered.
CSSI is for research and education only. It is not a clinical test, and results should not be used for medical decisions.
The full Participant Agreement is included in the registration form. You can read it before submitting; your answers are not sent until you click Submit.
Your PRivacy Matters
You own your genomic data. Here is how CSSI protects it:
- miRcore assigns a code to your sample. The CLIA-certified sequencing laboratory receives only the coded sample, never your name.
- miRcore transfers your data to your own University of Michigan HPC account. After that, you control your data.
- miRcore does not analyze, interpret, or share your data.
- Sharing any result for collective research is voluntary, anonymous, and requires separate consent.
Full details are in the Participant Agreement, which you can review in the registration form before submitting.
Get Involved / Stay Updated
Not ready to join this round, or interested in working with us? There are other ways to take part in CSSI:
- Bring CSSI to your group: education and small-group research opportunities for your students, trainees, mentees, or community.
- Collaborate: we welcome educators, clinicians, researchers, and industry partners interested in personal genomics education and data ownership.
- Support the program: help with sequencing, computer storage, research software, or mentoring and teaching.
Fill out our contact form to stay updated on future CSSI programs or to tell us how you would like to be involved.