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Disease genetics

The importance of networking

Nature Reviews Genetics volume 10, page 153 (2009)Cite this article

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To identify genetic motifs linked to skin cancer and inflammation, Quigley and colleagues crossed mice of two species, Mus spretus and Mus musculus, as they are respectively resistant and susceptible to tumour development. After inducing skin tumours in a number of the mice, they extracted mRNA from uninvolved tail skin for gene expression analysis. Combining mRNA profiling with linkage analysis allowed the authors to construct a 'susceptibility network' of gene expression and regulation in the normal skin.

The normal skin network identified at least 62 genes involved in hair follicle biology, which are regulated by numerous expression QTLs (eQTLs; genetic loci that influence other genes in cis or in trans). A candidate regulatory gene in the hair follicle network was the G-protein-coupled receptor Lgr5 , agreeing with its previously described role as a stem cell marker in hair follicles and intestinal cells. Further work is needed to determine whether Lgr5 is the 'master regulator' of hair follicles; presumably this would be of great interest to industries concerned with hair regrowth.

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ORIGINAL RESEARCH PAPER

  1. Quigley, D. A. et al. Genetic architecture of mouse skin inflammation and tumour susceptibility. Nature 11 Jan 2009 (doi: 10.1038/nature07683)

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  1. HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology,

    Chris Gunter

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  1. Chris Gunter
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Gunter, C. The importance of networking. Nat Rev Genet 10, 153 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrg2543

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