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Study Explains Why Africans May Be More Susceptible To Tuberculosis

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  • Study Explains Why Africans May Be More Susceptible To Tuberculosis

    Source: http://www.redorbit.com/news/health/...-tuberculosis/

    Study Explains Why Africans May Be More Susceptible To Tuberculosis
    July 25, 2013
    Low expression of immune response gene ?MIF? increased risk for TB

    A researcher from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and colleagues have identified the genetic mutation in Africans with HIV that puts them at a much higher risk for tuberculosis (TB) infections.

    Africans have some of the highest rates of TB in the world, and it has long been suspected that genetic susceptibility plays a role. However, establishing candidate genes across populations to gauge risk has remained a challenge.

    Now, a new study, published this week in the online Early Edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, found that a commonly occurring polymorphism in an immune response gene called macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) confers almost a two-and-a-half fold increased risk for severe TB in patients from Uganda who were co-infected with HIV.

    Low-expressers of MIF were almost twice as common among people of African ancestry as Caucasians...
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