Genetics of autoimmune gastritis

自身免疫性疾病是由人体免疫系统攻击自身组织引起的疾病。一组自身免疫性疾病，被称为甲状腺-胃丛集，似乎具有共同的遗传风险因素，因为它们往往同时发生——要么发生在同一患者身上，要么发生在家族中。已知甲状腺功能簇内的一些疾病在遗传上非常复杂，而其他疾病似乎要简单得多。此外，一些自身免疫性疾病的动物模型在基因上更简单。我们选择在出生第三天切除胸腺的老鼠身上研究胃炎的遗传学，因为这个模型涉及的基因相对较少；我们发现只有4种基因会影响患病风险。这意味着它将给我们最好的机会来识别这些基因中的至少一个。使用的方法包括选择育种技术和产生特殊的基因转移小鼠，其中一个品系的个体将携带来自另一个品系的插入基因。通过这种方式，我们可以准确地确定哪些基因会影响患病风险。一旦确定，基因序列将帮助我们确定相同的基因是否在人类疾病中起作用，如果是这样，将开发新的诊断测试和治疗方法。

Autoimmune diseases are those caused by the body's immune system attacking the body's own tissues. One group of autoimmune diseases, termed the thyrogastric cluster appear to share genetic risk factors, because they tend to occur together - either in the same patient, or else in families. Some of the diseases within the thyrogastric cluster are known to be very complex genetically, while others appear to be much less complex. Furthermore, some animal models of autoimmune diease are genetically simpler still. We have chosen to study the genetics of gastritis in mice that have had their thymuses removed on the third day of life, because this model has relatively few genes involved; we have found that only 4 genes affect the risk of disease. This means that it will give us the optimum chance of identfiying at least one of these genes. The methods used involve both selective breeding techniques and generating special gene transfer mice in which individuals from one strain will carry the inserted genes from another. In this way, we can identify exactly which genes affect the risk of disease. Once identified, the gene sequences will help us determine if the same gene plays a role in human disease, and if so, to develop new diagnostic tests and therapies.