Whole-exome sequencing in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis suggests NEK1 is a risk gene in Chinese.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive neurological disease characterised by the degeneration of motor neurons, which are responsible for voluntary movement. There remains limited understanding of disease aetiology, with median survival of ALS of three years and no effective treatment. Identifying genes that contribute to ALS susceptibility is an important step towards understanding aetiology. The vast majority of published human genetic studies, including for ALS, have used samples of European ancestry. The importance of trans-ethnic studies in human genetic studies is widely recognised, yet a dearth of studies of non-European ancestries remains. Here, we report analyses of novel whole-exome sequencing (WES) data from Chinese ALS and control individuals.

SUBMITTER: Gratten J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5693798 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature