Finding diseases linked to variants in immune system genes

Your immune system protects you from infection and disease. Different people have different versions, or “variants,” of many immune system genes. These variants may affect how a person’s immune system works. This may explain why some people can fight off disease better than others. This project will look for diseases linked to common variants in immune system genes. Using BioVU DNA samples, the researchers will find patients with variants in these genes. From the medical records linked to these samples, they can find out which diseases go along with these variants. Researchers can then study how these variants affect the body’s ability to fight disease, and study whether or not these variations are associated with any disease. This research may help us understand why some people get sick and others don’t. It may also help us make better vaccines (“shots”) to protect us from some diseases.