Loading...
The prevalence of atopic disease has been increasing over the past few decades. Several genetic associations have been identified, but many of these have been weak. Recently, in studies of families with ichthyosis vulgaris (IV), researchers linked IV with mutations in the FLG gene, which encodes the epidermal protein filaggrin, important in the formation of the skin barrier. Because IV is common among patients with atopic dermatitis (AD), it is reasonable to hypothesize that a loss of function in FLG may also be involved in atopic dermatitis.
Palmer and colleagues analyzed the genetic basis for AD by using the IV family population studies. Two loss-of-function changes in FLG (R501X and 2282del4) showed cosegregation with the AD phenotype in …