2024-03-14 17:06:00
Northwestern Medicine scientists identified new genes involved in the development of uterine fibroids through a meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies. They identified 24 new genetic risk locations and showed that almost 400 genes can contribute to the development of fibroids.
They also discovered that certain immune cells also play a role in the development of uterine fibroids, in addition to smooth muscle cells. Single-cell gene expression data from patients with uterine fibroids helped identify causative cell types with increased expression of high-risk genes. The study incorporated data from people with diverse ancestry, providing a more inclusive picture of uterine fibroid risk.
By comparing the information with different populations, they showed that the regions of the genome associated with the disease are unique for each population.
The researchers plan to inhibit the genes identified in models of the disease to stop the growth of uterine fibroids. The goal is to better understand the genetics of the disease to find which genes need to be inhibited to block the development of uterine fibroids.
The study highlights the importance of studying diseases in populations of diverse ancestry, showing that regions of the genome associated with disease are unique depending on ancestry. This provides a more complete understanding of uterine fibroid risk compared to previous studies that only looked at patients of European ancestry.
The study was published in the journal Nature Communications.
#genes #related #uterine #fibroids #discovered