Scientists in Iceland have produced an unprecedented snapshot of a nation’s genetic makeup,
discovering a host of previously unknown gene mutations that may play roles in
ailments as diverse as Alzheimer’s disease, heart disease and gallstones.
In a series of
papers published on Wednesday in the journal Nature Genetics,
researchers at Decode, an Icelandic genetics
firm owned by Amgen, described sequencing the genomes — the complete DNA — of
2,636 Icelanders, the largest collection ever analyzed in a single human
population.
With this trove of genetic information,
the scientists were able to accurately infer the genomes of more than 100,000
other Icelanders, or almost a third of the entire country. While many
researchers are trying to treat heart disease by targeting cholesterol
levels, this new mutation seems to affect heart disease through a different
route.
Dr. Harper said that he expected many
more insights from the DNA of Icelanders.
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