Functional integrative genomics of complex cardiovascular traitsTraditional genetics techniques have made it possible to identify numerous genetic variations responsible for hereditary Mendelian diseases. Despite their severity, such diseases (where a variation of the sequence of one single gene is usually sufficient to explain occurrence of the disease) are relatively rare. In contrast, more common diseases that affect large segments of the population (such as for instance cardiovascular diseases) are considered as being “complex diseases”, where genetic predisposition is the result of interactions between a great number of genes.
To decipher the genetic determinants of complex cardiovascular traits, we study genetic animal crosses using new and developing techniques of functional integrative genomics. To do this, we use bioinformatics tools to integrate various kinds of biologic information, including whole genome genetic variations, tissue gene expression and gene functions to elucidate how complex genetic interactions may lead to the development of certain cardiovascular phenotypic traits.
