personalised medicine Flashcards
What are Biomarkers?
Biological characteristics that can be measured, often used as indicators of disease or response to treatment.
What types of biomarkers exist?
- Molecular
- Anatomical
- Physiological
- Biochemical
Give an example of a molecular biomarker.
Proteins, DNA, RNA
What does an anatomical biomarker indicate?
Alterations in the brain detected by MRI.
What is an example of a physiological biomarker?
Blood pressure.
What does a biochemical biomarker measure?
Enzyme activity.
What is the focus of current research?
To find appropriate biomarkers
What technologies are included in current studies?
Several different technologies, including microArray, sequencing, and imaging.
What types of omics are being used in current research?
Various omics: proteome, transcriptome, metabolome, and microbiome.
What is required for future research?
Development of new tests that are robust and standardised.
What is necessary for development
Samples for large scale analysis
Access to Biobanks of samples
Permission from patients to access medical records
Samples must be stored, processed, and have detailed records
What is depression?
Depression (major depressive disorder) is a common and serious medical illness that negatively affects how you feel, the way you think and how you act.
American Psychiatric Association
cons of current therapies
drug resistance, side effects, availability
3 inflammatory diseases
rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis and crohn’s disease
What could a significant association between a genotype at one SNP and disease indicate?
- The SNP is associated with the disease.
- The SNP is associated with another factor which is associated with disease.
What are some factors that may be genetically associated?
- Ethnic ancestry.
- Genotyping batch, genotyping centre.
- DNA quality.
What role do environmental exposures play in genetic associations?
They may be in the same causal pathway.
Provide an example of a causal pathway involving nicotine receptors.
Nicotine receptors -> smoking -> lung cancer.
Hung et al, Nature 452: 633 (2008) + other articles in same issue.
Provide an example of a causal pathway involving alcohol dehydrogenase genes.
Alcohol dehydrogenase genes -> alcohol consumption -> throat cancer.
Hashibe et al, Nature Genetics 40: 707 (2008).
warfarin blood clotting
catalyses conversion of fluid blood to a solid fibrin gel/clot
