An Evolutionary Framework for Common Disease

Francesca Luca, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA
Anna Di Rienzo, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA

Published online: December 2007

DOI: 10.1002/9780470015902.a0020758

Susceptibility alleles for common diseases are a subset of all natural genetic variation; as such they are jointly shaped by random drift and natural selection. Computer simulation and empirical studies show that models of purifying selection and adaptive evolution apply to risk alleles for common diseases. These models have important implications for the design of disease-mapping studies.

Keywords: disease association studies; allele frequency spectrum; genetic variation; natural selection

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Related Sub-Topics:

Selection and Variation | Human Evolution | Variation by Mutation and Recombination | Molecular Genetics of Common and Complex Disease
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Article Title: An Evolutionary Framework for Common Disease
 
How to Cite close
Luca, Francesca, and Di Rienzo, Anna(Dec 2007) An Evolutionary Framework for Common Disease. In: eLS. John Wiley & Sons Ltd, Chichester. http://www.els.net [doi: 10.1002/9780470015902.a0020758]