Genes in severe form of arthritis are ID'd

HOUSTON, Oct. 22 (UPI) -- Britain's Wellcome Trust Case Control Consortium and an international team of scientists have identified two genes that cause a disabling form of arthritis

The team -- led by Drs. John Reveille of the University of Texas Medical School and Matthew Brown of Australia’s University of Queensland, and geneticist Lou Cardon of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center -- identified two genes that cause ankylosing spondylitis, an inflammatory and potentially disabling disease.

Reveille said the discovery of genes ARTS1 and IL23R brings the scientific community two steps closer to fully understanding ankylosing spondylitis or AS, a chronic form of arthritis that attacks the spine and can target other joints and organs in the body.

"We've long known that the HLA-B27 gene accounts for 40 percent of the overall cause of AS," said Reveille. "Now we have found two new genes. Together with HLA-B27, these genes account for roughly 70 percent of the overall cause.

"That means we've almost nailed this disease. Within the next year, I predict we will have identified all the genes that play a role in this insidious disease. There is more exciting news to come."

The research appears in the online journal Nature Genetics.