Linking Genes and Environmental Exposure: Why China Presents Special Opportunities

The Human Genome Project will have an enormous impact on our ability to study and understand human disease by providing maps of human genes. However, many of the most prevalent human diseases result from the complex interaction of numerous genes. Even with the use of a catalogue of human genes, the...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inCancer causes & control Vol. 8; no. 3; pp. 518 - 523
Main Authors Xu, Xiping, Schork, Nicholas J.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Netherlands Rapid Science Publishers 01.05.1997
Subjects
Alzheimers disease
Cancer
China
Chromosome Mapping
Cost-Benefit Analysis
Demography
Diabetes
Environmental Exposure
Epidemiologic Studies
Epidemiology
Family
Genes
Genes - genetics
Genetic diseases
Genetics, Population
Harvard-Teikyo Symposium
Human genetics
Human Genome Project
Humans
Medical genetics
Molecular Epidemiology
Molecular genetics
Neoplasms - etiology
Neoplasms - genetics
Phenotype
Population Density
Population genetics
Rural Population
Urban Population
China
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Summary:The Human Genome Project will have an enormous impact on our ability to study and understand human disease by providing maps of human genes. However, many of the most prevalent human diseases result from the complex interaction of numerous genes. Even with the use of a catalogue of human genes, the task of analyzing complex genetic and environmental interactions involved in the common human disorders will be formidable. Due to its demographic specificities and large size, the Chinese population offers a unique resource for the study of human genetics and the ability to capitalize upon the recent revolution in biotechnology. Reasons that China provides an exceptional population for genetic studies of complex diseases include: (i) the resource of 1.3 billion people makes obtaining a large number of subjects with rare (and common) diseases possible; (ii) relative genetic homogeneity in many regions has been preserved; (iii) stratification is distinct; (iv) urban/rural and geographic contrasts, both in environmental factors and disease occurrence, are quite marked; (v) family members tend to stay congregated; and (vi) epidemiologic study is cost-beneficial.
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ISSN:0957-5243
1573-7225
DOI:10.1023/A:1018425825684