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CHICAGO: An explosion in genetic research is helping physicians
detect and treat deadly diseases and could soon lead to genetic
prescreening to assess risk and design personalized preventative
treatments, researchers said Tuesday.
A special issue of the Journal of the American
Medical Association assessed the state of genetic-based treatments
and presented a number of significant discoveries, including a
genetic predisposition for developing post-traumatic stress
disorder.
“The magnitude, scope, and pace of discovery
in genetics and genomics research are at unprecedented levels and
continue to increase exponentially,” JAMA editor in chief
Catherine DeAngelis wrote in a co-authored editorial.
“These discoveries have important implications
for understanding disease processes, for predicting disease
susceptibility and progression, and for refining and individualizing
treatments—all of which ultimately have the potential to improve
health and to increase both quality of life and longevity.”
Advanced computing technology and the completion
of the Human Genome Project in 2003 and other key databases have
pushed genetic research into “a rapid discovery phase,” lead
author Gregory Feero of the National Human Genome Research Institute
wrote in a commentary.
“In the past year, genome-wide association
studies yielded highly robust information on scores of new genetic
markers for common chronic disorders including diabetes, heart
disease, Crohn disease, and several common cancers,” he wrote.
-- AFP
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