A functional genomic approach to the genetics of autoimmune (type A) gastritis

Funded Activity Summary

The thymus produces white blood cells which defend the body from infections and cancer. Unfortunately, these white blood cells can also cause disease if they target the body's own tissues. These disesaes are called autoimmune diseases, and an example of such a disease is autoimmune (type A) gastritis, in which the white cells target the acid-producing cells of the stomach. The resulting damage can lead to the development of pernicious anaemia (vitamin B12 deficiency) and cancer of the stomach. This project studies a mouse model of autoimmune gastritis with the aim of identifying the genes that encode susceptibility to the disease in this model. Ultimately, this information should help us to devise therapies that can be applied to the clinical situation. We have previously identified the locations of the genes which are responsible for causing gastritis in these mice. Two of them are very close together on one chromosome and appear to be very important because they have the strongest effects. Furthermore, there is some evidence that these genes may also be involved in determining susceptibility to diabetes and lupus. This project aims to further characterise these genes by locating them more exactly and by examining their effect on mice not normally prone to gastritis.

Funded Activity Details

Start Date: 01-01-2002

End Date: 01-01-2004

Funding Scheme: NHMRC Project Grants

Funding Amount: $467,640.00

Funder: National Health and Medical Research Council

Research Topics

ANZSRC Field of Research (FoR)

Emergency medicine

ANZSRC Socio-Economic Objective (SEO)

There are no SEO codes available for this funding activity

Other Keywords

autoimmune disease | autoimmune gastritis | autoimmunity | cellular immunity | cellular immunology | gastritis | genetic susceptibility | immunogenetics | inherited diseases | mouse genetics

Related Links