Genetics of common complex diseases: a view from Iceland.

• Published in: European Journal of Internal Medicine
• Main Authors: Arnar, David O, Palsson, Runolfur
• Other Authors: 1 Landspitali Natl Univ Hosp Iceland, Internal Med Serv, Div Cardiol, Reykjavik, Iceland Show the Organization-Enhanced name(s) 2 Univ Iceland, Sch Hlth Sci, Fac Med, Reykjavik, Iceland 3 Landspitali Natl Univ Hosp Iceland, Div Nephrol, Internal Med Serv, Reykjavik, Iceland
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Science 2017
• Subjects: Gen; Erfðagreining; NEP12; CAR12; Genome-Wide Association Study; Iceland
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/2336/620280; https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejim.2017.03.018

To access publisher's full text version of this article click on the hyperlink below In the past decade, large scale genotyping has led to discoveries of numerous sequence variants that confer increased risk of many common complex diseases. Interestingly, a substantial proportion of pioneering genetic work has originated from the small nation of Iceland and has been facilitated by an extensive genealogy database. We provide examples of relevant observations made so far in several major disease categories central to internal medicine practice. Some of these findings offer new mechanistic clues into the pathophysiology of common disorders and may suggest novel approaches in diagnosis and drug therapy. However, a number of unresolved issues remain that will be subject of future research, driven by recent advances in high-throughput sequencing of the genome. At the same time, we are ready to begin transforming the abundant existing genetic data into practical clinical knowledge with the aim of improving the delivery of medical care. The era of precision medicine has arrived. Landspitali University Hospital Science Fund Sigurlidi Kristjansson and Helga Jonsdottir Memorial Fund