[Integrating environment and disease into "omic" analysis].
New techniques grouped together under the general term of "omic" techniques are bringing about a revolution in biological research, as can be clearly seen in the case of genomics. However, environmental factors (such as lifestyle, socioeconomic context and diet) have not been incorporated to their full extent into these "omic" techniques despite evidence that many common diseases largely result from interactions between genetic and environmental factors. However, if the integration of environmental variables into "omic" analysis is to provide valuable information, it is essential that they are quantified in a highly precise and repeatable manner and that they are adequately validated. In addition, because of the enormous volume of information that will be generated by "omic" techniques and by taking environmental variables into account, it is also essential that bioinformatics and biostatistical methods are further developed.
Ordovás
José M
JM
Nutrition and Genomics Laboratory, JM-USDA-HNRCA at Tufts University, 711 Washington Street, Boston, MA 02111, USA. jose.ordovas@tufts.edu
D004194:Disease / Q000209:etiology*; D004777:Environment; D044127:Epigenesis, Genetic; D023281:Genomics; D006801:Humans; D040901:Proteomics