PHYSIOLOGICAL GENETICS: APPLICATION TO HYPERTENSION RESEARCH

Abstract

1. The rapid advancement of the human genome within the next 5–7 years begins a new era for biological research. The structure of all ~100 000 genes will be known, but the function of the majority of these genes will remain unknown. This paper outlines a ‘physiological genetics’ strategy for determining the genetic basis of hypertension by combining a variety of techniques (e.g. genetics, molecular biology, bioinformatics and physiology), to help identify gene function and the pathways involved in the development of hypertension in the rat. 2. Using comparative gene mapping, these regions can be used to implicate susceptibility loci for hypertension in humans, resulting in rapid conversion of basic research in animal models to relevant clinical assessment. The present study outlines some new strategies (i.e. whole‐animal physiological genetics) as a means to study disease aetiology in polygenic disorders and to facilitate gene identification in the ascent of functional genomics.