The genetic dissection of essential hypertension.
QTL mapping in humans and rats has identified hundreds of blood-pressure-related phenotypes and genomic regions; the next daunting task is gene identification and validation. The development of novel rat model systems that mimic many elements of the human disease, coupled with advances in the genomic and informatic infrastructure for rats, promise to revolutionize the hunt for genes that determine susceptibility to hypertension. Furthermore, methods are evolving that should enable the identification of candidate genes in human populations. Together with the computational reconstruction of regulatory networks, these methods provide opportunities to significantly advance our understanding of the underlying aetiology of hypertension.
Cowley
Allen W
AW
Department of Physiology, Medical College of Wisconsin, 8701 Watertown Plank Road, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53226, USA. cowley@mcw.edu
D000818:Animals; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000502:physiology; D002874:Chromosome Mapping; D003433:Crosses, Genetic; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D018703:Founder Effect; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D008040:Genetic Linkage; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000235:genetics* / Q000503:physiopathology; D009154:Mutation; D040641:Quantitative Trait Loci; D051381:Rats; D013045:Species Specificity