Genomics & Health Weekly Update

This weekly update provides information about the impact of human genomic research on disease prevention & population health. Learn more about the Genomics & Health Weekly Update.

Thursday, July 9, 2009       Volume 23   Number 2

 

Spotlight

NIH to Host Family History Conference
On August 24-26, 2009, the National Institutes of Health will hold the first Family History State-of-the-Science Conference in Bethesda, Maryland to assess the available scientific evidence related to the use and effectiveness of family history information for predicting and improving patient health outcomes. Read more. Register for the conference.

 

Announcements

• President Obama announces his intent to nominate Francis Collins, MD, PhD as new director of the National Institutes of Health. Dr. Collins served as former director of the National Human Genome Research Institute. Read the press release.
• New report released by the Institute of Medicine Committee on Comparative Effectiveness Research, providing recommendations for setting national health care priorities for research and funding. Access the report. Read commentary in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
• New workshop summary titled, Innovations in Service Delivery in the Age of Genomics, by the Institute of Medicine's Roundtable on Translating Genomic-Based Research for Health is now available.
• New paper, Developing the Blueprint for a Genetic Testing Registry  (PDF 209 KB), published online ahead of print in the Public Health Genomics Journal. Authors: Javitt G, Katsanis S, Scott J, and Hudson K. Read the issue brief.
• The National Institutes of Health hosts the Cancer Pharmacogenomics: Setting a Research Agenda to Accelerate Translation workshop on July 21, 2009 in Bethesda, Maryland. Registration is now closed. For more information, email Linnea Bowman.
• CDC’s Office of Public Health Genomics releases the 2008 Program Review  (PDF 286 KB).

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Genomics In The News

The following are headlines from on-line news articles published during the past week. The headlines and lead sentence are exactly as they appear in the popular press & do not necessarily reflect the opinions or recommendations of CDC. Free registration required for some articles.

Cancer

Possible Drug Target Found For One Of The Most Aggressive Breast Cancers, Science Daily, July 9

Genetic factors implicated in survival gap for breast, ovarian or prostate cancer, EurekAlert, July 8

Variations In 5 Genes Raise Risk For Most Common Brain Tumors, Medical News Today, July 6

Dogs, Humans, put Heads Together to Find Cure for Brain Cancer, North Carolina State University Newsroom, July 6

Australian researchers identify genes that cause melanoma, EurekAlert, July 6

International Study Links 3 Genes To Melanoma, Medical News Today, July 6

DNA alterations on human chromosome 9 linked to glioblastoma, Medical News, July 5

Cardiovascular Disease

Cholesterol-Regulating Genes Identified By Scientist, Medical News Today, July 8, 2009

Cholesterol Control Genes Found That May Point To Heart Disease Risk, Medical News Today, July 8, 2009

Ethical, Legal, and Social Issues (ELSI)

Stanford Bioethicist And Colleagues Call For Federal Regulation Of Genetic Ancestry Testing, Medical News Today, July 4

Genetic Testing

Lords warn genetic test firms, HealthInvestor, July 7

Test helps Oklahoma doctors tailor cancer patient treatment, NewOK, July 5

Mental Health

CAMH combines genetics with brain imaging to personalize treatment for mental illness and addictions, Canadian Business Online, July 7

Immune System Linked To Schizophrenia, ScienceDaily, July 6

The single life can increase some people's dementia risk, Medical News, July 5

In Pursuit Of A Happiness Gene, ScienceDaily, July 2

Obesity

LPIN1 gene expression linked to lower adiposity and favorable metabolic profile..., Medwirenews, July 8

Obesity gene found, stuff.co.nz, July 6

Other News

Pick to Lead Health Agency Draws Praise and Some Concern, New York Times, July 9

Korean male gene map unveiled, News24.com, July 9

Hearing Improved: First Successful Medical Treatment For Tumor-inducing Genetic Disorder, ScienceDaily, July 9

Britain Calls for a Genomic Health Road Map, Technology Review, July 8

Genetic Breakthrough Spells Hope for Lung Fibrosis Patients, HealthScout, July 8

Targeting New Pancreatitis Treatments, ScienceDaily, July 8

Action Needed To Realise The Potential Of New Genetic Studies, Medical New Today, July 8

Pitt team first to profile genes in acutely ill idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis patients, EurekAlert, July 7

Yeast helps scientists in gene research, News.scotsman.com, July 7

Jeffrey A. Schloss: The 'Unsung Hero' of the Human Genome Project, The Washington Post, July 6

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Genomics in Scientific Literature

General Articles

Genome-wide scans using archived neonatal dried blood spot samples
Hollegaard MV, et al.
BMC Genomics 2009 Jul;10(1):297

A genome-wide association study primer for clinicians
Wang TH & Wang HS
Taiwan J Obstet Gynecol 2009 Jun;48(2):89-95

Finding common susceptibility variants for complex disease: past, present and future
Panoutsopoulou K & Zeggini E
Brief Funct Genomic Proteomic 2009 Jul

Single nucleotide polymorphism arrays: a decade of biological, computational and  technological advances
Laframboise T
Nucleic Acids Res 2009 Jul

A genetic variants database for arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia/cardiomyopathy
van der Zwaag PA, et al.
Hum Mutat 2009 Jun

No Change in the Age of Diagnosis for Fragile X Syndrome: Findings From a National Parent Survey
Bailey DB Jr, et al.
Pediatrics 2009 Jul

Studying Genetic Variations in Cancer Prognosis (and Risk): A Primer for Clinicians
Savas S & Liu G
Oncologist 2009 Jul

Family History

Predictive value of family history on severity of illness: the case for depression, anxiety, alcohol dependence, and drug dependence
Milne BJ, et al.
Arch Gen Psychiatry 2009 Jul;66(7):738-47

Association of Family History of Autoimmune Diseases and Autism Spectrum Disorders
Atladottir HO, et al.
Pediatrics 2009 Jul

Impact of family hypertension history on exercise-induced cardiac remodeling
Baggish AL, et al.
Am J Cardiol 2009 Jul;104(1):101-6

Familial predisposition to developmental dysplasia of the hip
Stevenson DA, et al.
J Pediatr Orthop 2009 Jul-2009 Aug;29(5):463-6

Genetic Testing

To Take or Not to Take Genetic Carrier Tests: Personal Characteristics Associated with Taking Recommended and Nonrecommended Tests
Barnoy S, et al.
Genet Test Mol Biomarkers 2009 Jul

Genetic Testing for Inflammatory Bowel Disease: Focus Group Analysis of Patients  and Family Members
Lewis JR, et al.
Genet Test Mol Biomarkers 2009 Jul

Responses to Online GSTM1 Genetic Test Results among Smokers Related to Patients  with Lung Cancer: A Pilot Study
Sanderson SC, et al.
Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2009 Jun

Genome Wide

Genome-wide association study identifies three loci associated with melanoma risk
Bishop DT, et al.
Nat Genet 2009 Jul

Genome-wide association study identifies variants at 9p21 and 22q13 associated with development of cutaneous nevi
Falchi M, et al.
Nat Genet 2009 Jul

Common polygenic variation contributes to risk of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder
Purcell SM, et al.
Nature 2009 Jul

Common variants on chromosome 6p22.1 are associated with schizophrenia
Shi J, et al.
Nature 2009 Jul

A genome-wide association study of northwestern Europeans involves the CNP signaling pathway in the etiology of human height variation
Estrada K, et al.
Hum Mol Genet 2009 Jul

Genome-wide Association Study of Alcohol Dependence
Treutlein J, et al.
Arch Gen Psychiatry 2009 Jul;66(7):773-84

Genome-wide association study identifies five susceptibility loci for glioma
Shete S, et al.
Nat Genet 2009 Jul

HuGE

For this week's human genome epidemiology articles, please visit the HuGE Navigator.

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