Susceptibility gene search for nephropathy and related traits in Mexican–Americans

Abstract

The rising global epidemic of diabetic nephropathy (DN) will likely lead to increase in the prevalence of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality posing a serious burden for public health care. Despite greater understanding of the etiology of diabetes and the development of novel treatment strategies to control blood glucose levels, the prevalence and incidence rate of DN is increasing especially in minority populations including Mexican Americans. Mexican Americans with type 2 diabetes (T2DM) are three times more likely to develop microalbuminuria, and four times more likely to develop clinical proteinuria compared to non-Hispanic whites. Furthermore, Mexican Americans have a six fold increased risk of developing renal failure secondary to T2DM compared to Caucasians. Prevention and better treatment of DN should be a high priority for both health-care organizations and society at large. Pathogenesis of DN is multi-factorial. Familial clustering of DN-related traits in MAs show that DN and related traits are heritable and that genes play a susceptibility role. While, there has been some progress in identifying genes which when mutated influence an individual’s risk, major gene(s) responsible for DN are yet to be identified. Knowledge of the genetic causes of DN is essential for elucidation of its mechanisms, and for adequate classification, prognosis, and treatment. Self-identification and collaboration among researchers with suitable genomic and clinical data for meta-analyses in Mexican Americans is critical for progress in replicating/identifying DN risk genes in this population. This paper reviews the approaches and recent efforts made to identify genetic variants contributing to risk for DN and related phenotypes in the Mexican American population.

Association between ELMO1 gene polymorphisms and diabetic nephropathy in an Iranian population

“…However, no clear etiology and pathogenesis have been found [ 11 – 13 ]. Outbreak of DN between ethnic groups and familial clustering affirms the presence of a genetic component [ 14 – 17 ]. Main part of the research on DN evaluates the genetic role in DN pathogenesis because elucidation of genes associated with DN can help for better understanding of disease molecular mechanism, complications, prevention and treatment [ 12 ].…”

Genetics of kidney disease and related cardiometabolic phenotypes in Zuni Indians: the Zuni Kidney Project

“…Genetic studies, including candidate gene and genome-wide association studies (GWAS), have been conducted to elucidate the effects of specific genes on the variation in CKD and cardiometabolic risk factors. These include studies conducted in Caucasians ( Hwang et al, 2007 ; Parsa et al, 2013 ), African Americans ( Edwards et al, 2008 ; Willer et al, 2013 ; Bidulescu et al, 2014 ), Asians ( Yamakawa-Kobayashi et al, 2012 ; Willer et al, 2013 ), Mexican Americans ( Farook et al, 2013 ; Thameem et al, 2013 ), Pima Indians ( Bian et al, 2013 ; Hanson et al, 2013 , 2014 ), and in the 13 American Indian tribes participating in the Strong Heart Family Study ( Franceschini et al, 2013 ; Voruganti et al, 2014 ). To decrease the burden of kidney disease and related intermediate phenotypes in the Zuni Pueblo, we established the Zuni Kidney Project (ZKP) in partnership with the Indian Health Service, University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Texas Biomedical Research Institute and Dialysis Clinic, Inc. (DCI; Stidley et al, 2002 ).…”