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About the study....
Psoriasis is an inflammatory skin disorder that affects
approximately 2% of Americans (click
here to see examples of psoriasis). Because only about one-third
of all patients with psoriasis have a relative who is also affected
with the disorder, psoriasis is not widely recognized as a genetic
disease. However, previous research on families and identical
twins has shown psoriasis has a strong genetic component, although
environmental factors (such as infections, stress, and injuries)
are also important. The reason that psoriasis is not widely recognized
as a genetic disorder is because more than one gene is probably
required to develop disease. The purpose of this study is to identify
these genes.
Our study was started in 1991 with a goal to identify the genetic bases of psoriasis. Since then work from our laboratory as well as others have revealed that psoriasis is a "complex disease" which may involve genetic, immunological and environmental factors. Our focus is on the genetic aspects of psoriasis. Research during the last ten years has revealed at least nine potential gene locations that may contribute to psoriasis, some more important than others. No definite psoriasis gene has yet been identified. Once the general gene locations are identified, the next step is to test genes and gene regulating regions of DNA that may be involved by an analysis method called genetic association testing. Since this is a statistical analysis, obtaining reliable results requires testing a large number of patients. We estimate that it will take approximately 2,000 participants affected with psoriasis and an equal number of unaffected controls to get reliable results. If you are interested in participating in the study, click here for details of study criteria. Additional information is also detailed in the Consent to be Part of a Research Study document.We believe that this research will provide information about the fundamental cause of psoriasis, which will greatly help in the design of better treatments for this disorder.
This study has been reviewed and approved by the Institutional Review Board for human subject research at the University of Michigan (IRBMED No. 1990-0381) and adheres to all applicable regulations.