A new UK project to search for genetic variations that influence the risk of eight major diseases is set to begin, after receiving almost £9 million of funding. The Wellcome Trust Case Control Consortium (WTCCC) will study over 19,000 DNA samples to identify genetic 'signposts' for tuberculosis susceptibility, heart disease, type 1 and type 2 diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, bipolar disorder and high blood pressure.
The research group, made up of 24 leading human geneticists, will collect DNA samples from 2000 patients for each disease, and 3000 samples from 'control' individuals. Professor Peter Donnelly, chair of the consortium, said: 'If we can identify the common genetic triggers for these diseases, it will give us a foothold in the biological cycle and leave us better situated to fully understand what happens with each of these diseases and who may be more likely to get them'. In turn, he said, this should open the door to 'better diagnostic tests' and 'more effective treatments'.
The study will build on the findings of the Human Genome Project - the international effort to read the entire human genetic code, completed in 2003 - and subsequent work to identify variations scattered throughout the genome. In a second, smaller project, the WTCCC will study 15,000 of these variations in an effort to identify those associated with breast cancer, autoimmune thyroid disease, multiple sclerosis and ankylosing spondylitis. The work is expected to take around three years to complete.
The WTCCC's case-control approach is complementary to that of large-scale prospective studies aiming to identify genetic factors involved in common diseases. One such study, UK Biobank, is collecting and storing DNA samples and medical information from up to 500,000 volunteers aged between 45-69 years. The aim of the project, jointly funded by the UK's Medical Research Council (MRC), Department of Health and the Wellcome Trust, is to study the role of genes and environment in health and disease. It hopes to identify factors involved in common diseases such as heart disease, cancer, Parkinson's disease and diabetes.
Sources and References
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Search for genetic origins of disease
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Researchers Set to Find 'Genetic Signposts' for Eight Diseases
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Disease gene signposts sought out
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