Approved Research

Modeling of polygenic risks and characterization of pleiotropy across respiratory, inflammatory, and metabolic disorders

Lay summary

Various genetic disorders affecting respiratory, immune, and metabolic systems often co-occur in the same set of patients. A substantial portion of this co-occurrence is considered to be due to shared genetic factors. However, the extent and functional organization of the shared genetic factors are not fully understood and need to be studied at finer resolutions. We will apply multi-trait analysis techniques and polygenic scores to map and characterize the genetic risk factors shared across disorders at higher genetic and functional resolutions.

This study will potentially lead to the discovery of new disease genes and the development of novel computational techniques. Polygenic risk scores will be constructed for the early identification of at-risk individuals in clinics. The surveillance for such high-risk groups is essential for the management of chronic disorders. We expect this project to take up to 3 years to complete.