Talk

Nutrigenomics - the study of how your genes and your diet interact to affect your health - has gained a lot of attention this year as a result of the promise it holds, and the perennial salesmen who are always trying to make a buck off the newest fad.

A team of team of researchers at Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Centre of Genomics in Society at the University of Exeter are lauching a study to find out what’s truth and what’s (science) fiction.

The BBC News reports:

Research has been carried out which has suggested some links between genetic variations and being vulnerable to certain illnesses or disorders which might react to certain diets.

But work has not yet been done which shows the reverse - that eating a certain diet can protect against a disease which your genes make you vulnerable to.

(more…)

In October, I posted about how rescue workers from the World Trade Center were being diagnosed with Alpha-1, an inherited lung and liver disease that is suspected to be much more prevalent than once thought. You don’t hear about Alpha-1 very often — but now there’s encouraging news about a potential treatment for Alpha-1.

A clinical trial at the University of Florida has evaluated a gene therapy to treat Alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, and the results are promising. People with Alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency make little or none of the alpha-1 antitrypsin protein, which is essential for health. In this clinical trial, the researchers used a virus to deliver a corrective gene that codes for the alpha-1 antitrypsin protein to 12 participants with Alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency. (more…)

The next big biobank just got the go-ahead yesterday and is set to become the worlds’ largest resource. After a successful pilot this spring, the UK Biobank will collect DNA samples from half a million Britons to study genes, environment and health. Their goal is to identify the genetic components of common diseases, including cancer, heart disease, diabetes and dementia. Over the next four years, the UK Biobank will collect blood samples, lifestyle information and follow-up health information and outcomes from volunteers aged 40 to 69.

The Biobank explains how this significant endeavor is possible (props to socialized medicine):

The UK National Health Service treats the single largest group of people anywhere in the world, and keeps detailed records on all of them from birth to death. Consequently, follow-up of UK Biobank participants through routine medical and other records will allow identification of those who develop a wide range of disabling and life-threatening conditions. This will make UK Biobank a uniquely valuable resource.

We may all benefit from this research, though. Researchers from around the world can apply to the UK Biobank for access to the resource. Privacy hounds are assured that strict systems will be in place to protect participants’ privacy.

The Biobank is funded by the British government, the Wellcome Trust medical research charity and other sources, at a cost of ~$115.6 million.

There are now a handful of large DNA banks underway. With each launch or milestone, comes a flurry of discussion about the promises, perils, and privacy concerns of DNA bank research. What do you think this research will or won’t tell us? Personally, I think DNA-based research will soon be ubiquitous, just as tissue-based research is today. Today’s concerns about privacy and ethics will be passé tomorrow as we establish standards and procedures and get used to the idea that DNA is just part of the personal info out there that we have to protect.

Read more:

UK Biobank’s Ethics & Governance Framework
BBC coverage of the pilot launch of the Biobank
DNA bank initiatives in the States

Technorati Tags: DNA banks, genes, health, diseases, environment, UK Biobank, privacy

This week’s Journal of the American Medical Association has commentary about the research into genes related to chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). Unfortunately, the full-text article is closed to the public, but you can get a brief excerpt from JAMA online.

Technorati Tags: chronic fatigue syndrome, CFS, genes, Tracy Hampton

Yesterday the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced that researchers have identified clusters of genes that appear to be involved in the development of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. The findings, from the largest and most comprehensive clinical study to date, could lead to a better understanding of CFS.

Specifically, these findings may help with diagnosis, help with the development of treatment drugs, help understand who is at risk for CFS, and help identify preventive measures.

This research underscores both the promise of genomic research and the complexity of it. Genes are rarely a black-and-white issue, and genes rarely work alone. Identifying genes is just the beginning. Understanding how they are expressed, and the factors that affect their expression, is the next step.

Dr. Suzanne Vernon of the CDC has been quoted in the recent flurry of news coverage. She mentions a prior study that distinguished different gene activity patterns between healthy people and people with CFS, and explains: “What we have shown now is that in addition to the differences in gene activity that we know occur, there are actual differences in the genetic makeup — the DNA code — that probably results in the differences in the gene activity and also results in the manifestations of the illness itself.”

Listen to a great investigative report on NPR’s “Morning Edition”

Read news coverage, each has details about the research:
Washington Post
Los Angeles Times
New York Times
Sydney Morning Herald

Technorati Tags: genes, DNA, chronic fatigue syndrome, health, disease, genes and environment

People are often asking our company if they can buy a test that will “scan my genes for everything.” No, not yet, but perhaps soon. Today’s Wall Street Journal has a cover story on technology that is leapfrogging genetic research and genetic testing.

Microarrays are small microchips coded to detect DNA sequences from a blood sample. They can scan 100,000s of gene variations at once – enabling researchers to conduct research that is significantly more comprehensive, faster, and cheaper than previous lab processes for genetic testing.

But let’s not just talk about what science can do. Let’s think about what it means. The WSJ describes microarrays as allowing us “to search for genetic roots of some of humanity’s most common traits.” Indeed, many conditions, such as diabetes, are believed to involve not one but many genes. Research is underway for genetic underpinnings of obesity, autism, depression, Alzheimers, and many other conditions. Learning more about genes also tells us more about environmental and other factors. As a result, gene findings can help us develop better screening, preventive measures, and treatments.

Technorati Tags: DNA testing, genes, genetics, disease, diabetes, autism, depression, alzheimers, obesity, microarrays

The advent and increasing popularity of ancestry testing raises complicated issues about how we conceive of ethnicity, and what it means to claim it — Is ethnicity genetic? Is it cultural? Is it how you see yourself, or how the world sees you?

Today’s New York Times (“Seeking Ancestry in DNA Ties Uncovered by Tests”) discusses how people are using, and wrestling with, the increasing popularity of this testing. (Disclosure: our company, DNA Direct, does not do ancestry testing. We stick to tests with health/medical applications).

Like the expression of genes themselves, our understanding of “race” and “ethnicity” is dynamic: It will continue to evolve, it will be complex, it will be individual, and it will be influenced by many environmental, personal, and genetic forces.

Technorati Tags: ancestry, DNA testing, genes, genetics, ethnicity

The NIH is looking for sisters of women who’ve had breast cancer. Why? For one of the first long-term studies to look at how genes and environmental factors — homes, workplaces, and communities — affect women’s risk of breast cancer.

The Sister Study is exciting for a number of reasons:

• They’re enrolling 50,000 women. Such a large study will give more powerful results.

• They’re studying women from various racial and ethnic groups. Women of color have historically been underrepresented in research and have different risk issues. For example, African American women have higher rates of death from breast cancer.

• They’re studying women from different generations. By gathering information about jobs, geography and medical history, they can uncover about environmental factors and breast cancer risk over time.

If, like me, you Race for the Cure in honor of the women in your family – consider giving a bit more: give yourself. Participating by donating and advocacy is important, but partipating in scientific research is another. The progress of science depends on people participating in scientific research. So often, the people being asked to participate are patients or survivors. This is a great opportunity for us, the supporters, to give something truly valuable that can improve the lives of the generations to come. Thanks to Dr. Hsien Hsien Lei for drawing attention to the Sister Study and the importance of participation.

Read Sister Stories from study participants
See if you are eligible to enroll in the study

Technorati Tags: breast cancer, BRCA testing, DNA testing, genes, genetics, sisters, clinical trials