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The Inherited Disease Research Branch (IDRB) develops and applies new methods and tools to identify genetic contributions to human disease, with particular emphasis on the study of common multi-factorial disorders. IDRB investigators specialize in statistical genetics and genetic epidemiology, which are disciplines of genetics that combine statistics, epidemiology, mathematics, molecular genetics, and computer science to identify genetic variants responsible for increased susceptibility to disease and variation of phenotypic traits. The Branch also serves as a major link between NHGRI and the Center for Inherited Disease Research (CIDR), a Federally supported facility located at The Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland that provides high-throughput genotyping to scientists at NIH and at research institutions around the world.
Statistical genetics approaches are becoming increasingly important due to the availability of prodigious amounts of genomic data being collected from individuals. Moreover, the rapidly growing catalog of single-nucleotide polymorphisms in the human population, the decreasing cost of genotyping, and the recent completion of a haplotype map of the entire human genome are giving this area of research unprecedented opportunities for advancing the study of complex genetic diseases. IDRB scientists capitalize on these opportunities by actively developing new statistical theories and software to analyze data sets emanating from large-scale genetic association and linkage studies. They also use these innovative approaches to distinguish genuine genetic influences from random background noise.
Co-Chiefs and Senior Investigators
Joan E. Bailey-Wilson, Ph.D.
Senior Investigator and Co-Chief, Inherited Disease Research Branch
Head, Statistical Genetics Section
Alexander F. Wilson, Ph.D.
Senior Investigator and Co-Chief, Inherited Disease Research Branch
Head, Genometrics Section
Charles N. Rotimi, Ph.D.
Senior Investigator, Inherited Disease Research Branch
Director, Center for Research on Genomics and Global Health [crggh.nih.gov]
Related Research Project Web Sites
Genometric Analysis Simulation Program (GASP) [research.nhgri.nih.gov]
Affiliated Research Centers
Center for Inherited Disease Research (CIDR) [cidr.jhmi.edu]
Last Reviewed: May 21, 2012
