Notice: Users may be experiencing issues with displaying some pages on stanfordhealthcare.org. We are working closely with our technical teams to resolve the issue as quickly as possible. Thank you for your patience.
 

Learn about the flu shot, COVID-19 vaccine, and our masking policy »

Stanford Health Care

Model Organisms Facilitate Rare Disease Diagnosis and Therapeutic Research GENETICS Wangler, M. F., Yamamoto, S., Chao, H., Posey, J. E., Westerfield, M., Postlethwait, J., Hieter, P., Boycott, K. M., Campeau, P. M., Bellen, H. J., UDN 2017; 207 (1): 9-27

Abstract

Efforts to identify the genetic underpinnings of rare undiagnosed diseases increasingly involve the use of next-generation sequencing and comparative genomic hybridization methods. These efforts are limited by a lack of knowledge regarding gene function, and an inability to predict the impact of genetic variation on the encoded protein function. Diagnostic challenges posed by undiagnosed diseases have solutions in model organism research, which provides a wealth of detailed biological information. Model organism geneticists are by necessity experts in particular genes, gene families, specific organs, and biological functions. Here, we review the current state of research into undiagnosed diseases, highlighting large efforts in North America and internationally, including the Undiagnosed Diseases Network (UDN) (Supplemental Material, File S1) and UDN International (UDNI), the Centers for Mendelian Genomics (CMG), and the Canadian Rare Diseases Models and Mechanisms Network (RDMM). We discuss how merging human genetics with model organism research guides experimental studies to solve these medical mysteries, gain new insights into disease pathogenesis, and uncover new therapeutic strategies.

View details for DOI 10.1534/genetics.117.203067

View details for Web of Science ID 000409179800002

View details for PubMedID 28874452

View details for PubMedCentralID PMC5586389