title: Expression quantitative trait locus analysis for translational medicine.
abstract: Expression quantitative trait locus analysis has emerged as an important component of efforts to understand how genetic polymorphisms influence disease risk and is poised to make contributions to translational medicine. Here we review how expression quantitative trait locus analysis is aiding the identification of which gene(s) within regions of association are causal for a disease or phenotypic trait; the narrowing down of the cell types or regulators involved in the etiology of disease; the characterization of drivers and modifiers of cancer; and our understanding of how different environments and cellular contexts can modify gene expression. We also introduce the concept of transcriptional risk scores as a means of refining estimates of individual liability to disease based on targeted profiling of the transcripts that are regulated by polymorphisms jointly associated with disease and gene expression.
authors.affiliation: Center for Integrative Genomics, School of Biology, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332 USA.
authors.forename: Greg
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Gibson
authors.affiliation: Centre for Neurogenetics and Statistical Genomics, Queensland Brain Institute, University of Queensland, St Lucia, Brisbane, QLD 4072 Australia ; The Institute for Molecular Bioscience, University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4072 Australia.
authors.forename: Joseph E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Powell
authors.affiliation: Center for Integrative Genomics, School of Biology, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332 USA.
authors.forename: Urko M
authors.initials: UM
authors.lastname: Marigorta