Kidney disease seriously affects the Australian Indigenous population with it killing more people from remote communities than anything else. We have studied the genetics of this disease and have identified several genes and genetic variants that contribute to the disease. These genes are involved in kidney development and inflammation. We are making mice and cell lines with these genetic variants in order to investigate how these may cause kidney disease and test the efficacy of potential therapeutic interventions.

Population genetic analyses of 73 unrelated individuals the Tiwi Islands. The plot shows a principal components (PCs) analysis of 11 populations globally distinct populations (hapmap3) and the Tiwi cohort. Each point represents an individual. More distant points are more genetically distinct. Tiwi study participants that self-reported as mixed heritage are indicated by opaque purple squares. 

Related reading

Thomson, R.J., et al., New Genetic Loci Associated With Chronic Kidney Disease in an Indigenous Australian Population. Front Genet, 2019. 10: p. 330.