A PLATFORM FOR RESEARCH ON COMPLEX TRAITS AND DISEASES
This cohort of about 20,000 individuals drawn from villages in and around Kalyani – a peri-urban region near Kolkata (formerly Calcutta) has been formed to serve as a platform for prospective studies on genomics of health and disease, to be carried out under the leadership of the National Institute of Biomedical Genomics (NIBMG), Kalyani.
Crucial to the success for attainment of the goal of understanding the genomic underpinnings of human health and disease and the interaction between genes, life-style and other environmental factors, is the development of a platform for population- and family-based studies on health and disease. Genome-wide association (GWA) studies have arguably transformed the science of discovering genetic variants that influence common, complex diseases. GWA studies have mostly been carried out using case-control study designs, in which ascertained patients and a set of age- and gender-matched unaffecteds are chosen and their genomic differences investigated to provide clues about the genomic factors underlying the diseases. However, because the people participating are not drawn at random, extrapolation of findings of a case-control study requires extreme caution. If we wish to understand the real impact of the identified gene for a disease risk at the population level for disease risk we need to study population cohorts. A population-based study, in which no selection is made, should address most of the concerns over case-control studies. The formation and systematic screening of population cohorts are emerging as crucial to the discovery of genomics of common diseases and in understanding how these genomic variants interact with environmental factors.
The Social Outreach Plan:
NIBMG is arranging for quality diagnosis of diseases for persons and families enrolled in this study, that is also fostering linkages among the local population, NIBMG and hospitals in Kalyani and Kolkata.
| National Institute of Biomedical Genomics, | |
| P.O.: N.S.S., Kalyani 741251, | |
| West Bengal, INDIA | |
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Telefax:
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+91-33-25892151 |
| email: |
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