Feinberg
Northwestern Medicine | Northwestern University | Faculty Profiles

News Center

  • Categories
    • Campus News
    • Disease Discoveries
    • Clinical Breakthroughs
    • Education News
    • Scientific Advances
  • Press Releases
  • Media Coverage
  • Podcasts
  • Editor’s Picks
    • COVID-19
    • Cardiology
    • Cancer
    • Neurology and Neuroscience
    • Aging and Longevity
    • Artificial Intelligence in Medicine
  • News Archives
  • About Us
    • Media Contact
    • Share Your News
    • News Feeds
    • Social Media
    • Contact Us
Menu
  • Categories
    • Campus News
    • Disease Discoveries
    • Clinical Breakthroughs
    • Education News
    • Scientific Advances
  • Press Releases
  • Media Coverage
  • Podcasts
  • Editor’s Picks
    • COVID-19
    • Cardiology
    • Cancer
    • Neurology and Neuroscience
    • Aging and Longevity
    • Artificial Intelligence in Medicine
  • News Archives
  • About Us
    • Media Contact
    • Share Your News
    • News Feeds
    • Social Media
    • Contact Us
Home » African Ancestry Affects Gene Expression
Scientific Advances

African Ancestry Affects Gene Expression

By Marla PaulDec 11, 2019
Share
Facebook Twitter Email

First study to compare gene production among African Americans

Minoli Perera, PharmD, PhD, associate professor of Pharmacology, was the lead author of the study, the first to compare gene expression among African Americans.

The percentage of African ancestry in a person’s genome determines the level that certain genes are expressed, as measured by mRNA, according to a new Northwestern Medicine study. The discovery could offer insight into the different risk of diseases as well as a different response to medications in African Americans.

This study, published in Genomic Medicine, is the first to compare gene production between African Americans. Previous studies compared only black and white individuals.

“We know there is a difference between black and white. We asked, does ‘the shade gray’ matter? Apparently it does,” said lead study author Minoli Perera, PharmD, PhD, associate professor of Pharmacology.  “We continue to lump individuals into racial categories to determine what will work best in them as a group. But African Americans are not a monolithic group.”

“African Americans are not a monolithic group.”
The research examined the gene products, or mRNA, in the liver, which metabolizes drugs. The gene production, or mRNA levels, indicate how much protein will be made for a gene in specific tissue. Proteins are the workers that carry out the biological functions in our body.

There were at least 28 genes whose expression (mRNA level) varied with the proportion of African ancestry. These genes were linked to 220 diseases or clinical outcomes such as coronary heart disease and triglyceride levels. Some of the identified genes that vary with African ancestry are related to drug metabolism (CYP2C19), renal disease (APOL1) and are an important target for cancer therapy (VGEF.)

This study was done by isolating hepatocytes, the major cell type in the liver, from 60 African American livers. These living cells contain the genome of the donor.

For groups like African Americans and other “admixed” populations like Latinos, variability within the group may be important to how we interpret findings, Perera said.

“To have precision medicine may require understanding ancestry and not just the DNA sequence in these minority populations,” she said.

The aim of the study is to add information on African Americans to the scientific sphere.

“These types of data are sorely missing in most of the public databases,” Perera said. “If African Americans are not represented in these databases, the factors that are unique to them will never be considered for precision medicine or drug target discovery.”

The research was supported by National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities Research Project grant 1R01MD009217-01 (R01) and the National Human Genome Research Institute award R35HG010718, both of the National Institutes of Health.

Genetics Pharmacology Research
Share. Facebook Twitter Email

Related Posts

Small, Implantable Device Could Sense and Treat Cancer

Sep 26, 2023

Gene Linked to Glioblastoma Stem Cell Self-Renewal and Immunosuppression

Sep 26, 2023

Investigating the Link Between Iron Deficiency and Regulation of Cell Growth

Sep 25, 2023

Comments are closed.

Latest News

Lloyd-Jones Announces He is Stepping Down as Chair of Preventive Medicine

Sep 27, 2023

Small, Implantable Device Could Sense and Treat Cancer

Sep 26, 2023

Gene Linked to Glioblastoma Stem Cell Self-Renewal and Immunosuppression

Sep 26, 2023

Northwestern Simulation’s In Situ Training Tests Cardiac Arrest Response Teams

Sep 25, 2023

Investigating the Link Between Iron Deficiency and Regulation of Cell Growth

Sep 25, 2023
  • News Center Home
  • Categories
  • Press Release
  • Media Coverage
  • Editor’s Picks
  • News Archives
  • About Us
Flickr Photos
20230914_NM461
20230914_NM644
20230914_NM345
20230914_NM444
20230914_NM464
20230914_NM520
20230914_NM673
20230914_NM641
20230914_NM612
20230914_NM608
20230914_NM602
20230914_NM597

Northwestern University logo

Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine

RSS Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Flickr YouTube Instagram
Copyright © 2023 Northwestern University
  • Contact Northwestern University
  • Disclaimer
  • Campus Emergency Information
  • Policy Statements

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.