The databank, operated by the northern center of the national human genome research scheme, will focus on collecting genetic resources in northern China to facilitate the study of cardiac andcerebrovascular diseases, cancer and other fatal diseases.

　　Deputy head of the center, Professor Chen Biao, said he hoped that the establishment of the databank will help to discover genesresponsible for certain diseases.

　　The databank already has 20,000 specimens for heart diseases and several thousands of blood and tissue specimens for Alzheimer's disease and hypertension, amongst others, Chen said.