This short news article was sent to me by several local support group members. It's about a meta-analysis of five genome-wide association studies (GWAS) done by NIH. Prior to the study, six genetic variants had been known to increase one's risk of getting Parkinson's Disease. After the meta-analysis, an additional five genetic variants were identified.

This research could have implications for the LBD community as some of the original six genetic variants were also thought to be associated with LBD.

After the news article below, I've copied the abstract of the journal article that appears in The Lancet. At the same link as the abstract, you can also see the full article at no charge. (You have to register for online access.)

Robin


http://health.usnews.com/health-news/fa ... parkinsons

Scientists ID Genetic Clues to Parkinson's
Finding suggests DNA may play stronger role in disease than previously thought
Posted: February 2, 2011
US News 0 HealthDay News

WEDNESDAY, Feb. 2 (HealthDay News) -- Five new genetic variants believed to play a role in Parkinson's disease have been identified by researchers.

It was long believed that Parkinson's disease was caused by environmental factors. But since 2007, scientists have pinpointed six genetic variants that may affect a person's risk of developing the condition. This new study brings that to a total of 11 genetic variants.

Andrew Singleton, of the National Institute on Aging at the U.S. National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Md., and an international team of scientists conducted a meta-analysis of five genome-wide association studies that were conducted in Europe and the United States and covered about 7.7 million possible genetic variants.

The analysis showed that 20 percent of people with the highest number of the 11 identified gene variants were 2.5 times more likely to develop Parkinson's disease than the 20 percent of people with the least number of genetic risk factors.

The new findings are a starting point for further research into how Parkinson's disease develops, said the researchers.

"The identification of additional common and rare risk variants for Parkinson's disease will probably revise our estimate of the genetic component of [the] disease upward," they concluded in their report.

The study was released online Feb. 2 in advance of publication in an upcoming print issue of The Lancet.

More information

We Move has more about Parkinson's disease.



Here's the abstract and a link to the full article:

http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lance ... 40-6736(10)62345-8/fulltext

The Lancet, Early Online Publication, 2 February 2011

Imputation of sequence variants for identification of genetic risks for Parkinson's disease: a meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies

International Parkinson Disease Genomics Consortium

Summary

Background
Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) for Parkinson's disease have linked two loci (MAPT and SNCA) to risk of Parkinson's disease. We aimed to identify novel risk loci for Parkinson's disease.

Methods
We did a meta-analysis of datasets from five Parkinson's disease GWAS from the USA and Europe to identify loci associated with Parkinson's disease (discovery phase). We then did replication analyses of significantly associated loci in an independent sample series. Estimates of population-attributable risk were calculated from estimates from the discovery and replication phases combined, and risk-profile estimates for loci identified in the discovery phase were calculated.

Findings
The discovery phase consisted of 5333 case and 12 019 control samples, with genotyped and imputed data at 7 689 524 SNPs. The replication phase consisted of 7053 case and 9007 control samples. We identified 11 loci that surpassed the threshold for genome-wide significance (p<5×10-8). Six were previously identified loci (MAPT, SNCA, HLA-DRB5, BST1, GAK and LRRK2) and five were newly identified loci (ACMSD, STK39, MCCC1/LAMP3, SYT11, and CCDC62/HIP1R). The combined population-attributable risk was 60·3% (95% CI 43·7—69·3). In the risk-profile analysis, the odds ratio in the highest quintile of disease risk was 2·51 (95% CI 2·23—2·83) compared with 1·00 in the lowest quintile of disease risk.

Interpretation
These data provide an insight into the genetics of Parkinson's disease and the molecular cause of the disease and could provide future targets for therapies.

Funding
Wellcome Trust, National Institute on Aging, and US Department of Defense.

Thanks, Robin.