Inference of an Integrative, Executable Network for Rheumatoid Arthritis Combining Data-Driven Machine Learning Approaches and a State-of-the-Art Mechanistic Disease Map.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a multifactorial, complex autoimmune disease that involves various genetic, environmental, and epigenetic factors. Systems biology approaches provide the means to study complex diseases by integrating different layers of biological information. Combining multiple data types can help compensate for missing or conflicting information and limit the possibility of false positives.

Investigation of candidate gene copy number identifies FCGR3B as a potential biomarker for rheumatoid arthritis.

Objectives: Copy number variants (CNVs) could explain a part of the missing heritability in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Our goal is to investigate the association of RA with CNVs of three functional candidate genes, Glutathione S-transferase M1 (GSTM1), Glutathione S-transferase T1 (GSTT1) and Fcγ receptor type IIIAB (FCGR3B).

Methods: We quantified the absolute copy number of GSTM1, GSTT1 and FCGR3B genes using droplet digital PCR.

A novel nonsense variant in SUPT20H gene associated with Rheumatoid Arthritis identified by Whole Exome Sequencing of multiplex families.

The triggering and development of Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) is conditioned by environmental and genetic factors. Despite the identification of more than one hundred genetic variants associated with the disease, not all the cases can be explained. Here, we performed Whole Exome Sequencing in 9 multiplex families (N = 30) to identify rare variants susceptible to play a role in the disease pathogenesis.

Characterization of copy number variants for CCL3L1 gene in rheumatoid arthritis for French trio families and Tunisian cases and controls.

Analyses of copy number variants (CNVs) for candidate genes in complex diseases are currently a promising research field. CNVs of C-C chemokine ligand 3-like 1 (CCL3L1) gene are candidate genomic factors in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). We investigated CCL3L1 CNVs association with a case-control study in Tunisians and a transmission analysis in French trio families.