Research team find out how and why people are predisposed to diseases

A Queen’s University Belfast research team has discovered how and why certain DNA elements can predispose people to diseases.

They found that enhancer DNA elements exhibit high Propeller Twist levels, meaning that the surface of them are more accessible and flexible. These are properties that can make enhancer regions more prone to be affected by mutagenic agents that can harm cells and cause diseases.

Reader at Wellcome-Wolfson Institute for Experimental Medicine at Queen’s University Belfast Dr Vijay Tiwari said: ‘This could mean we could look at the enhancer section of DNA in any cell of a healthy person and predict their chance of developing disease long before signs and symptoms appear.’