Genetic Mutation Linked to Asthma Identified Among African-Americans

Researchers at the University of Chicago have identified a genetic mutation among African Americans that could be linked with an increased risk of asthma.

According to the report, published in the journal Nature Genetics, this mutation is unique to those of African American origin.

The mutation was found in the gene known as PYHIN1 and is linked to those genes that are involved in interferon signaling and thereby triggering asthma.

The researchers analyzed data from over nine genome-wise studies involving over 6,600 people of which nearly 3,250 had asthma. The researchers found that over a quarter of African descent origin carried at least one copy of the gene while at least one polymorphism of the gene could be found in over 34 percent of African American or Afro-Caribbean people with asthma.

Source: Medindia