Genetic Polymorphism and Disease

Genetic polymorphisms are important determinants of phenotypic   variations and may modulate the risk to or even cause various diseases   including genetic disorders and multifactorial diseases. Genetic   polymorphisms also serve as important genetic, population and   evolutionary markers that allow the study of genetic and evolutionary   aspects of individuals, populations and organisms and aid in tracing  the  evolutionary and parental lineages. Genetic polymorphisms in low   penetrance genes are responsible for the alterations in the gene   expression of critical signal transduction proteins and metabolic   enzymes. Some of these polymorphisms are linked to increased   susceptibility to various diseases especially cancers, cardiovascular   diseases, immune disorders, neurological pathologies. This book  collates  the reviews on the roles played by polymorphisms in critical  metabolic,  signal transduction, cell cycle or DNA repair genes either  directly or  indirectly in the disease mechanisms. The focus is on  various techniques  for identifying the various Single Nucleotide  Polymorphisms (SNPs).  Polymorphism studies document the affect SNPs,  and their expressions  have upon the functionality of the enzymes,  proteins.

Key Features
Describes  the genetic polymorphism and  its various typesDiscusses the role of  genetic polymorphisms in  modulating the risk of various human diseases  Explores various  molecular techniques used for detecting  GPsCharacterizes the role of  SNPs in modulating the susceptibility of  human diseasesProvides a  genetic basis for individual variations in  response to therapeutics