NEJM Focus on Genomewide Scans

by Dr. Hsien-Hsien Lei
Posted July 19, 2007 in DNA and Disease

The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) published a study this week presenting results from a genomewide association analysis that found a locus on chromosome 9 that is strongly associated with familial coronary artery disease (CAD). The study also confirmed the association of additional loci with CAD on chromosomes 1, 2, 6, 10, and 15. Accompanying this study are two related editorials and a perspective:

• Publishing Genomewide Association Studies by Jeffrey M. Drazen, M.D., and Elizabeth G. Phimister, Ph.D.

  We believe that these studies represent an important advance in medicine. They convey novel, unbiased information about the heritable basis of disease at a level of detail that has not been possible previously.
  

• Scanning the Genome for Coronary Risk by Anthony Rosenzweig, M.D.

  The identification of genetic contributors to coronary disease could provide more precise estimates of risk while defining the pathways important in individual patients, revealing new targets for intervention, and ultimately enabling a personalized approach to care.
  

• Drinking from the Fire Hose – Statistical Issues in Genomewide Association Studies by David J. Hunter, M.B., B.S., and Peter Kraft, Ph.D.

  The amount of data in these studies is four to five orders of magnitude greater than that in the previous generation of case–control studies, which tested only a handful of variants, often in a specific candidate gene. This unprecedented volume poses unusual statistical challenges for the analysis, display, and interpretation of the data.

Tags: nejm, genetics, genes, genomewide, genome, genomics, dna, science, coronary artery disease, heart disease, medicine

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5 Comments

Comment by NA

2007-07-20 03:15:30

This is a clear example that DNA analysis is becoming more widely accepted for the basis of diseases. It’s about time!!!!! It was not long ago that medical schools finally started to teach the students that males and females are different. Maybe medicine has now started to move into the very late 20th century. When personalized meidicne is used for every patient, that is when we can say medicine has advanced into the modern days.

The Gene Sharpa is a smart man/lady because he/she was smart enough to start the type of medical company he/she has started.

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Comment by Hsien

2007-07-20 12:25:41

NA, Gene Sherpa Steve is a man. And I agree that incorporating genetic information into healthcare is becoming a must-have rather than an option.

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Pingback by Eye on DNA Links for 22 July 2007

2007-07-22 17:25:59

[...] of the Nation talks to David Valle, Lawrence Brody, Aravinda Chakravarti, and David Goldstein about genomewide association studies for disease association gene variants – Scientists Scour Genome for Clues About Disease. They also [...]

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Pingback by Only One Gene for Exfoliative Glaucoma

2007-08-11 11:03:11

[...] a recent genomewide association study of 16,000 Icelandic and Swedish participants, researchers from deCODE Genetics, the National [...]

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Pingback by Eye on DNA Headlines for 7 September 2007

2007-09-07 12:46:26

[...] of maps, another genome-wide association study has found several gene loci associated with Crohn’s disease: NOD2, IBD5, IL23R, among others. [...]

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