The research, led by GIS Human Genetics Group Leader and Associate Prof. Liu Jianjun, will be published online on 25 Jan. 2009 in the journal Nature Genetics.

Studying genetic variants in the human genomes of a large cohort of patients with psorasis and healthy controls in the Chinese population, Dr. Liu and his colleagues, who are one of the three independent teams that have been simultaneously performing genetic studies on psoriasis, found that a genetic variant within what is known as the LCE gene cluster is able to provide protection against the development of psoriasis.

One of the LCE genes' functions is to code proteins that are part of cells located in the outermost layers of skin. These proteins are important for maintaining skin's barrier function.

"Together with the findings from the other two studies," said Dr Liu, "our finding suggests that compromised skin barrier function play a role in the development of psoriasis. This is a very important find, as it advances our understanding of the genetic basis of psoriasis, which in turn is important for early diagnosis and prediction of an individual's risk to the disease."

While Dr Liu's team focused on a Chinese population, the other two studies were conducted on Western populations. Dr Liu added, "Our team's work is also important because it is the first study ever done on a Chinese population “ all other studies on psoriasis so far have focused on western populations."

All three independent studies will be published by Nature Genetics at the same time.

Psoriasis is a common chronic, auto-immune and hyper-proliferative skin disease, usually characterized by red scaly patches on the skin. Affecting about one percent of individuals, it is a recurring condition with varying degrees of severity from minor localised patches to complete body coverage.

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"As our knowledge and abilities in molecular genetics continues to expand, so does our ability to detect certain conditions and traits prenatally," said Dr. Harry Ostrer, Director of Human Genetics Program at NYU Langone Medical Center. "Our study gauged the consumers' opinion towards reproductive testing for diseases and enhancements. Our research has found that a majority of respondents would elect to have prenatal genetic testing for life altering conditions but most respondents did not desire testing for enhancements. This survey also demonstrated that there was a desire for additional reproductive testing for medical conditions or life altering diseases, than currently offered."

In addition researchers investigated whether learning about risk for disease to oneself might dissuade an individual from undergoing prenatal genetic testing. The survey revealed that about 80% of all respondents would still have testing if it revealed increased risk for disease for oneself including Parkinson's disease, early menopause, breast cancer and if it revealed non-paternity.

According to researchers, this study recognizes the increased consumer demand for genetic testing and this higher demand may already be exceeding the number of available genetic counselors. Consumers may have also followed their own personal values or belief systems when assessing choice for genetic tests and that genetic counselors may want to develop a policy statement about new genetic tests that are becoming available and the ethical concerns regarding prenatal testing for life altering conditions.

The authors concluded that, "it seems unlikely that the 'Age of Designer Babies' is near at- hand."

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