The Brazilian Twin Registry

Abstract

The Brazilian Twin Registry (BTR) was established in 2013 and has impelled twin research in South America. The main aim of the initiative was to create a resource that would be accessible to the Brazilian scientific community as well as international researchers interested in the investigation of the contribution of genetic and environmental factors in the development of common diseases, phenotypes, and human behavior traits. The BTR is a joint effort between academic and governmental institutions from Brazil and Australia. The collaboration includes the Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG) in Brazil, the University of Sydney and University of Melbourne in Australia, the Australian Twin Registry, as well as the research foundations CNPq and CAPES in Brazil. The BTR is a member of the International Network of Twin Registries. Recruitment strategies used to register twins have been through participation in a longitudinal study investigating genetic and environmental factors for low back pain occurrence, and from a variety of sources including media campaigns and social networking. Currently, 291 twins are registered in the BTR, with data on demographics, zygosity, anthropometrics, and health history having been collected from 151 twins using a standardized self-reported questionnaire. Future BTR plans include the registration of thousands of Brazilian twins identified from different sources and collaborate nationally and internationally with other research groups interested on twin studies.

Twin Registries Moving Forward and Meeting the Future: A Review

“…Twin registries worldwide are becoming more aware of the unique contributions that they can offer in many different research areas and are increasing efforts to improve their collaborative efforts (Ferreira et al, 2016). Different twin registry models exist, with one extreme being that of the research-intensive twin registry such as Twins UK where research is typically driven from within.…”

Metabolic Profile and Body Composition in Twins Concordant and Discordant for Physical Exercise

“…The nonprobabilistic sample was obtained from twins registered at the I Twin Festival of Rio Grande do Norte, held in 2016 at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, in partnership with the Brazilian Twin Registry (Ferreira et al, 2016). Individuals with physical disabilities or musculoskeletal limitations that prevented walking or running, subjects on obesity-related drug treatment, twins of different sexes and individuals with positive responses to the Physical Activity Readiness Questionnaire (PAR-Q; Warburton et al, 2011) were excluded from the study.…”

Twin studies for the prognosis, prevention and treatment of musculoskeletal conditions

“…It is focused on studies within the musculoskeletal domain and is currently recruiting for a study on the environmental factors playing a role in low back pain. 54 The registry is also open for new collaborations and takes enquiries from researchers wanting to undertake twin studies with its support.…”