Het bestuderen van gen-omgevingsinteracties met behulp van patiënt-controlevergelijkingen

- Many chronic diseases are caused by the interaction of genes and environmental factors.

- Genetic epidemiologic research seeks to elucidate the role of genetic factors and their interaction with environmental factors in the occurrence of disease.

- Gene-environment interaction can be assessed using different types of case-control comparisons.

- The classic case-control design is suitable to investigate the association between multiple genes and environmental factors. Results can be presented in a two-by-four table.

- In a case-parents design, the genotype of each case is compared with the genotype of a fictitious control formed by the non-transmitted alleles from each parent.

- In a case-only design, the relationship between a genotype and an environmental factor is examined in a population of affected cases only.

- Both the case-parents and the case-only designs assume independence between genotype and environmental factors in the control group.

Ned Tijdschr Geneeskd 2005;149:977-82