Osteoporosis genes uncovered

Wednesday May 5th, 2010

Scientists have discovered several new genes linked to osteoporosis, it was announced yesterday.

Osteoporosis is a bone disease that increases the risk of fracture. It is highly heritable, so Dr Brent Richards at the Jewish General Hospital in Montreal, Canada, and colleagues investigated its associated genes.

The team reviewed figures from nearly 20,000 individuals in five recent international genetic studies. Their results are published in the journal Nature Genetics.

Twenty genes linked to bone disease were identified, including 13 which had never previously been associated with the disease.

Dr Richards said: "Osteoporosis hip fractures alone cost 2.4bn US dollars per year in Canada in direct care. Hip fractures are a common and costly condition which has a 50 per cent mortality rate at two years, worse than some cancers.

"We were able to look across the whole human genome to try to identify which genes - of all the genes that we inherit - that seem to be responsible for osteoporosis. Not only did we find 13 entirely new genes, we also demonstrated that some of these genes were related not just to bone density, but also to fracture risk itself."

Dr Richards hopes the findings will lead to improved treatments. "In order to better treat any condition, we need to know what causes it," he said. "We knew that one of the strongest factors in osteoporosis was genetic, but we didn't have a clear picture what those genetic factors were.

"This study affords us the opportunity to study the genetic mechanisms which control bone strength, and to intervene to prevent peoples' bones from getting weak. Also, if we are able to uncover more genes which influence bone strength, then we may be able to identify whole populations that require early preventive treatment."

Richards, J. B. et al. Nature Genetics, in press.

Tags: Genetics | North America | Orthopaedics | Rheumatology

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