Multipoint Linkage Disequilibrium Mapping Using Case-Parent Trios

Abstract

In this talk, we start with a brief introduction to the field of genetic epidemiology followed by a quick review of association study and case-parent trio design in testing for candidate genes. We will then present a multipoint linkage disequilibrium mapping method based on the case-parent trio design. The proposed method has the features that (i) all markers contribute information, regardless of whether the parents are heterozygous, (ii) a single test statistic is proposed to test for linkage and linkage disequilibrium and hence it avoids the problem of multiple comparisons and (iii) an estimate of the location of the trait locus along with its sampling uncertainty is provided. We illustrate the proposed methods with two data sets on family study of asthma with the emphasis on dealing with complex diseases.