Study nets record haul of disease genes The largest ever study
of genes in disease has found 24 genetic risk factors, half of
them new, linked to seven common conditions, UK scientists say.
It represents the biggest single haul of disease-associated
genes so far, underlining an accelerating pace of discovery that
researchers say will help unpick the fundamental biology of
major illnesses and may lead to more effective drugs. The
researchers and examined 500,000 genetic markers from each of
17,000 individuals, comparing the genomes of diseased and
healthy volunteers. Their findings include the discovery of four
new chromosome regions containing genes that can predispose to
type 1 diabetes and three new genes for Crohn's disease, the
most common form of inflammatory bowel disease. They also found
genetic links to coronary artery disease and hypertension,
rheumatoid arthritis, bipolar disorder and type 2 diabetes.
Significantly, many of the genes found were in areas of the
genome not previously thought to have b