A study at the University of Sheffield in the UK was conducted on the skin condition called psoriasis, revealing a link between susceptibility to psoriasis and regions on chromosomes 6p21 and 4q28-q31. According to the study, psoriasis, a chronic inflammatory dermatosis, is believed to be inherited and triggered by environmental, as well as genetic, factors. It affects "2%-5% of the Caucasian population and 0.1%-0.3% in the far East and China."

This new connection suggests that genes in Caucasians and this specific Chinese population may be involved in the origin and development of psoriasis. As the first meta-analysis performed in the area of this disease, the data collected confirms previous studies and spotlights two regions on chromosomes 6 (major histocompatibility complex MHC) and 4. Conclusively, the 4q28-q31 region has been identified as a focus for future investigation.

Over the past few years, ten genome-wide scans have been conducted, classifying 19 candidate regions for psoriasis. Of these regions, locus PSORS1 (within the MHC) has shown a large presence in the study results, encompassing data from six of the ten scans previously mentioned.

This study is published in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology. Media wishing to receive a pdf of this article please contact medicalnews@bos.blackwellpublishing.net.

About the Author
In 2001, Mr. Gurdeep Sagoo joined Dr. Tazi-Ahnini's group in the Division of Genomic Medicine at the University of Sheffield in the United Kingdom. The group has several other papers presented and published in the areas of psoriasis and dermatology. Mr. Sagoo and Dr. Tazi-Ahnini are both available for questions and interviews and can be reached at g.sagoo@sheffield.ac.uk or r.taziahnini@sheffield.ac.uk.

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Contact: Sharon Agsalda
medicalnews@bos.blackwellpublishing.net
781-388-8507
Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
15-Jul-2004

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